Digital contact tracing

Not to be confused with PCB electrical test.

Proposal for a location-based COVID-19 contact tracing app: Contacts of individual A (and all users of the app) are traced using GPS co-localisations with other app users, supplemented by scanning QR codes in high-traffic areas where GPS is too coarse. Individual A requests a SARS-COV-2 test (using the app) and their positive test result triggers instant notification to users who have been in close contact. The app advises isolation for the case (individual A) and quarantine of their contacts.[1]

Digital contact tracing is a method of contact tracing relying on tracking systems, most often based on mobile devices, to determine contact between an infected patient and a user.[2] It came to public prominence in the form of COVID-19 apps during the COVID-19 pandemic.[3][4][5] Since the initial outbreak, many groups have developed nonstandard protocols designed to allow for wide-scale digital contact tracing, most notably BlueTrace and Exposure Notification.[6][7]

When considering the limitations of mobile devices, there are two competing ways to trace proximity: GPS and Bluetooth; each with their own drawbacks. Additionally, the protocols can either be centralized or decentralized, meaning contact history can either be processed by a central health authority, or by individual clients in the network. On 10 April 2020, Google and Apple jointly announced that they would integrate functionality to support such Bluetooth-based apps directly into their Android and iOS operating systems.[8]

  1. ^ Ferretti, Luca; Wymant, Chris; Kendall, Michelle; Zhao, Lele; Nurtay, Anel; Abeler-Dörner, Lucie; Parker, Michael; Bonsall, David; Fraser, Christophe (2020-03-31). "Quantifying SARS-CoV-2 transmission suggests epidemic control with digital contact tracing". Science. 368 (6491): eabb6936. doi:10.1126/science.abb6936. ISSN 0036-8075. PMC 7164555. PMID 32234805.
  2. ^ "Digital contact tracing technologies in epidemics: a rapid review". Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.
  3. ^ Bogle, Ariel (2020-04-17). "Five questions we need answered about the government's coronavirus contact tracing app". ABC News. Archived from the original on 2020-04-18. Retrieved 2020-04-18.
  4. ^ Kim, Max S. (2020-04-17). "Seoul's Radical Experiment in Digital Contact Tracing". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on 2020-04-18. Retrieved 2020-04-18.
  5. ^ Shendruk, Amrita Khalid, Amanda (2020-04-16). "How Bluetooth could bring digital contact tracing for Covid-19 to billions". Quartz. Archived from the original on 2020-04-17. Retrieved 2020-04-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ Bay, Jason; Kek, Joel; Tan, Alvin; Sheng Hau, Chai; Yongquan, Lai; Tan, Janice; Anh Quy, Tang (2020-04-09). "BlueTrace: A privacy-preserving protocol for community-driven contact tracing across borders" (PDF). Government Technology Agency. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2020-04-20. Retrieved 2020-04-12.
  7. ^ "Privacy-Preserving Contact Tracing". Apple. Archived from the original on 2020-04-17. Retrieved 2020-04-19.
  8. ^ Sharon, Tamar (2021). "Blind-sided by privacy? Digital contact tracing, the Apple/Google API and big tech's newfound role as global health policy makers". Ethics and Information Technology. 23 (Suppl 1): 45–57. doi:10.1007/s10676-020-09547-x. PMC 7368642. PMID 32837287.