China released an app over the weekend that lets residents check to see if theyve come in close contact with Covid-19, the coronavirus thats killed more than a thousand people in the nation.<\/p>\n
According to Chinese state-run media agency Xinhua, app users must scan a QR code on one of several popular Chinese apps, such as WeChat, to make an inquiry. Next, they register their phone number and enter their name and government-issued identification number, with each phone number good for three inquiries.<\/p>\n
The app then lets the user know whether theyve been in close contact with anyone infected with the coronavirus, suspected of being infected with it, or exposed to it.<\/p>\n
As for how China defines close contact, according to the Xinhua story, it includes working with, going to school with, or living in the same house as a person. People who traveled in a fully enclosed air-conditioned train compartment together are also considered to have been in close contact, as are people who sat within a few rows of one another on an airplane.<\/p>\n
If the app determines that a person has been in close contact with the coronavirus, it advises that they stay home and contact health authorities.<\/p>\n
Xinhua wrote that the General Office of the State Council, the National Health Commission, and China Electronics Technology Group Corporations worked together to develop the app.<\/p>\n
The app uses data collected and shared by several government agencies, including the National Health Commission, the Ministry of Transport, China Railway, and the Civil Aviation Administration of China.<\/p>\n
While China is regularly criticized for the mountain of data it collects on citizens, this is one example of how that collection can benefit the public.<\/p>\n
In China, and across Asia, data is not seen as something to be locked down; its something that can be used, provided its done in a transparent way, with consent where needed, Carolyn Bigg, a technology lawyer at the law firm DLA Piper, told BBC News.<\/p>\n
From a Chinese perspective, this [app] is a really useful service for people, she continued, adding that its a really powerful tool that really shows the power of data being used for good.<\/p>\n
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Go here to see the original: China released an app over the weekend that lets residents check to see if theyve come in close contact with Covid-19, the coronavirus thats killed more than a thousand people in the nation. According to Chinese state-run media agency Xinhua, app users must scan a QR code on one of several popular Chinese apps, such as WeChat, to make an inquiry Continue reading
\nApp Checks Whether You've Come in Contact With Deadly Coronavirus - Futurism<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"