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COVID-19: TRACETOGETHER app & TOKEN to help with contact tracing!


BabyBlade
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Internal Moderator

SINGAPORE - A contact-tracing smartphone app has been launched to allow the local authorities to quickly track people who have been exposed to confirmed coronavirus cases.

Dubbed TraceTogether, the app is able to identify people who have been in close proximity - within 2m for at least 30 minutes - to coronavirus patients using wireless Bluetooth technology, said its developers, the Government Technology Agency (GovTech) and the Ministry of Health (MOH), on Friday (March 20).

"This is especially useful in cases where the infected persons do not know everyone whom they had been in close proximity with for an extended duration," said its developers.

While use of the app is not compulsory, those who use it have to turn on the Bluetooth settings in their phones for tracing to be done. They also need to enable push notifications and location permissions in the app, which is available on the Apple App Store or the Google Play store.

Should one of these users be infected, MOH will be able to quickly find out which other users they have been in close contact with, allowing for easier identification of potential cases and helping to curb the spread of the coronavirus here.

On its website, TraceTogether's developers said the app is meant to complement current contact-tracing methods and allow for the identification of people who were in close proximity with an infected person more efficiently. There is currently no target for the number of users for the app.

In a release on Friday, the Smart Nation and Digital Government Office (SNDGO) said users have to give explicit consent to participate in TraceTogether, and for their mobile number and data to be used for contact tracing.

"When requested by MOH, users can send their TraceTogether logs to facilitate the contact tracing process. Up to that point, the authorities, including MOH and GovTech, have no knowledge of the user's TraceTogether data," said SNDGO.

Official contact tracers will provide a code that users can match with a corresponding verification code on their app. Once authenticated, users will be given a PIN that allows submission of logs when entered.

Official contact tracers will also not ask for any personal financial details or request for the transfer of money over the phone.

When contacted by contact tracers, that is the point that users will be asked to share their data logs. If they refuse, they may be prosecuted under the Infectious Diseases Act.

On its website, TraceTogether developers said that keeping the app running all the time will not drain a phone's battery significantly.

The only data that is collected by the Government through this app is the user's mobile number, which is kept so that MOH can contact users quickly if they were in close proximity with an infected case.

The app also does not collect or use users' location data, but only records who they might have been close to.

Similar apps have been said to be successful in helping to turn the tide against the coronavirus in some countries.

In highly-connected South Korea, for instance, people know quickly when a new coronavirus case is found in their neighbourhood through a government alert sent to their mobile phones. This alert includes details such as the new patient's age, gender and travel history.

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https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/coronavirus-singapore-develops-smartphone-app-for-efficient-contact-tracing

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Turbocharged
6 minutes ago, BabyBlade said:

You downloaded?

Yes, was shared separately by my WA group.

It's simply using Bluetooth to sense proximity with others that you may come across and that has the app. This is to facilitate ease of tracing.

They don't capture location.

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Internal Moderator

[Sent by Gov.sg – 21 Mar]

*TraceTogether App - Let’s all help with contact tracing efforts*
- App helps contact tracers call you quickly
- Early contacting better protects those around you & reduces spread of COVID-19 in S'pore

*How it works:*
1. Download app at go.gov.sg/traceapp
2. Enter your SG mobile number; allow to share if you’re identified as case/close contact 
3. Turn on Bluetooth; enable necessary functions

- App does not collect personal or location data
- Bluetooth signals between users’ phones estimate distance between users and duration of encounters
- Data pulled with user’s consent

Tell your friends and family; share app. The more use it, the better prepared we will be to fight COVID-19 💪

More: go.gov.sg/govsg-trace

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Internal Moderator

tracetogether-620000.png.2f593d099dfeba335ed69707cd48d4d5.png

620,000 people installed TraceTogether in 3 days, S’pore’s open source contact tracing app

The app is to be open source, in order to allow other countries to adopt and adapt it for their contact tracing efforts.

In the three days since the app was launched, it has been installed by more than 620,000 people so far, said Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan in a Facebook post on the morning of Monday, Mar. 23.

About TraceTogether

TraceTogether helps with contact tracing by sending short-distance Bluetooth signals between phones of participating TraceTogether users in close proximity with each other.

The app estimates the distance between the app users, and the duration of such encounters.

Records of these encounters are encrypted and stored locally on each user’s phone for 21 days, which covers the incubation period of the virus.

Thus, TraceTogether users interviewed by MOH as part of contact tracing effort have the ability to consent to sending their TraceTogether data to MOH.

MOH is then able to decipher the data and obtain the mobile numbers of the user’s close contacts within a period of time.

This facilitates the contact tracing process, and enables contact tracers to inform TraceTogether users who are close contacts of Covid-19 cases more quickly.

More than 620,000 users

Vivian said in his Facebook post that TraceTogether had been installed by more than 620,000 people thus far, in the three days since it was launched.

Jason Bay, Senior Director at the Government Digital Services team at GovTech, posted a photograph on Facebook on Mar. 21 showing his team in the operations room.

He said that new users were signing up at the rate of several thousand per minute, with some bursts of almost one hundred per second.

At the time of his post, which was less than 24 hours since the launch of TraceTogether, “several hundred thousand users” had already signed up, he said.

If you haven't already sign up for it, please do so now!

The ones behind TraceTogether, in their ops room.

90161181_10105278558009233_1693896421066932224_n.jpg.781590babb25c7b3bd40662bcb25ff54.jpg

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45 minutes ago, BabyBlade said:

tracetogether-620000.png.2f593d099dfeba335ed69707cd48d4d5.png

620,000 people installed TraceTogether in 3 days, S’pore’s open source contact tracing app

The app is to be open source, in order to allow other countries to adopt and adapt it for their contact tracing efforts.

In the three days since the app was launched, it has been installed by more than 620,000 people so far, said Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan in a Facebook post on the morning of Monday, Mar. 23.

About TraceTogether

TraceTogether helps with contact tracing by sending short-distance Bluetooth signals between phones of participating TraceTogether users in close proximity with each other.

The app estimates the distance between the app users, and the duration of such encounters.

Records of these encounters are encrypted and stored locally on each user’s phone for 21 days, which covers the incubation period of the virus.

Thus, TraceTogether users interviewed by MOH as part of contact tracing effort have the ability to consent to sending their TraceTogether data to MOH.

MOH is then able to decipher the data and obtain the mobile numbers of the user’s close contacts within a period of time.

This facilitates the contact tracing process, and enables contact tracers to inform TraceTogether users who are close contacts of Covid-19 cases more quickly.

More than 620,000 users

Vivian said in his Facebook post that TraceTogether had been installed by more than 620,000 people thus far, in the three days since it was launched.

Jason Bay, Senior Director at the Government Digital Services team at GovTech, posted a photograph on Facebook on Mar. 21 showing his team in the operations room.

He said that new users were signing up at the rate of several thousand per minute, with some bursts of almost one hundred per second.

At the time of his post, which was less than 24 hours since the launch of TraceTogether, “several hundred thousand users” had already signed up, he said.

If you haven't already sign up for it, please do so now!

The ones behind TraceTogether, in their ops room.

90161181_10105278558009233_1693896421066932224_n.jpg.781590babb25c7b3bd40662bcb25ff54.jpg

One covid case in there - all will be traced together. 

 

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Supercharged
1 hour ago, Jamesc said:

Now can see where my MIL go.

:grin:

Don't think it tracks location .. still gotta depend on interviewers to piece together that information. 

You can casually asks your MIL where she has been to when you give her curry puffs from OCK ..  ha ha ha .. 

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1 minute ago, Ckll said:

Don't think it tracks location .. still gotta depend on interviewers to piece together that information. 

You can casually asks your MIL where she has been to when you give her curry puffs from OCK ..  ha ha ha .. 

Yeah if she not hungry means she makan outside.

:grin:

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Supercharged
2 minutes ago, Jamesc said:

Yeah if she not hungry means she makan outside.

:grin:

"steal eat" ? Ha ha .. 

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Internal Moderator

Help speed up contact tracing with TraceTogether

Try recalling who you met two weekends ago. Can you name everyone you met and talked to that day?

Chances are, probably not. And even if you did, there’s a good chance you might not have all their contacts.

These are some of the problems that come up during contact tracing after a COVID-19 case is confirmed. It is a complex and arduous process of interviewing the patient, listing down everything they did in the past 14 days, and identifying every person they had come into close contact with. Yet, it is a crucial step to detect further cases and preventing further possible spread of the virus.

To mitigate these problems, SGUnited, GovTech and the Ministry of Health have come up with a way for Singaporeans to track close contacts should the need arise – through a simple app.

Using Bluetooth, TraceTogether identifies other nearby phones with the app installed. It then tracks when you are in close proximity with these other persons, including timestamps. If the need arises, this information can then be used to identify close contacts based on the proximity and duration of an encounter between the two users.

Faster contact tracing when infection is confirmed

Once an individual is confirmed with the virus, he can choose to allow MOH to access the data in the app to help identify close contacts. While this will not replace the contact tracing process, it is a useful addition – especially when there are problems with recall.

Trace1.thumb.png.408183c82152277d8b23a6fe69cc3910.pngTrace2.thumb.png.a7c6aad11977b81081f1df0f25749b30.pngTrace3.thumb.png.eeb6966420238b700c285711eef9ea15.pngTrace4.thumb.png.190f452521adf36f9db92c59b93eb8d7.png

How do I use the app? 

  • Enter your mobile number (Step 1)
  • Enable push notifications (Step 2)
  • Keep Bluetooth turned on (Step 3)
  • Leave TraceTogether running! (Step 4)

Should I turn off the app?

Keep the app running with full permissions

When DORSCON levels return to Green, the app will stop running, and you will receive an update on how you can delete your data

What about my privacy?

The app does not track your location or contacts

Data is stored in your phone for only 21 days and will not be accessed unless you are identified as a close contact

Measures are in place to protect your mobile number. Your number is paired with a a random ID, and it is this ID that is exchanged between phones, not your actual number

The app is up and running on my phone. What next?

Make sure to leave it running. If you’re worried about battery life, fret not, the battery consumption is only marginally higher

If you are identified as a close contact of a confirmed case through the app, MOH will contact you directly. Similarly, if MOH needs to conduct contact tracing with you, they will seek your permission to access the data on your app

Share it with your friends and family! The app works when there are other users around who have it installed too, so the more people have it, the more comprehensive the info can be

 

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Internal Moderator

Indonesia develops surveillance app to bolster contact tracing

JAKARTA (THE JAKARTA POST/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - Indonesia's Communications and Information Ministry, in collaboration with the State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Ministry, has developed a mobile app that enables users to compile data related to the spread of coronavirus in their communities and help bolster the government's efforts to trace and track confirmed cases, as well as suspected patients across the country.

The homegrown app, dubbed PeduliLindungi for the time being, cross references the data stored on its users' mobile devices through Bluetooth connection.

When a user is in the vicinity of another user whose data has been uploaded to PeduliLindungi, the app enables an anonymous exchange of identities, according to its official website.

If a user is found to have been in close proximity with confirmed suspected cases under surveillance, the app will identify them.

Such a feature is expected to help fill in the blanks regarding travel history and close contacts that are vital to contact tracing and case tracking.

"PeduliLindungi respects your privacy. Your data will be encrypted and not be disclosed to any other party. Your data can only be accessed if you are likely to have been infected with Covid-19 and require immediate medical attention," the webpage said in regard to data security.

The app, which is undergoing a stress test, will be available for download at the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store upon launch.

National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) spokesman Agus Wibowo said the government was preparing the app's database.

"We are preparing the system. We've been collecting contact details of confirmed and suspected cases. The (Covid-19) task force will track the phone numbers to learn about where they've been and whom they've met," Mr Agus said last Saturday (March 28).

He went on to say that the system would then send text messages to confirmed and suspected cases, reminding them to consult a doctor.

"The (surveillance) dashboard has been established. The tracking functionality (is enabled). The system will probably be launched on Tuesday," he said.

Indonesia has recorded 1,285 confirmed Covid-19 cases and 114 deaths as of Monday.

https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/coronavirus-indonesia-develops-surveillance-app-to-bolster-contact-tracing?utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=STFB&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR3XIHCQWgTeAXz0sM0CWwRbdBHywkZA933tEMssKfbgrTj3fujdG4InMzI#Echobox=1585549145

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Internal Moderator

Germany aims to launch Singapore-style coronavirus app in weeks

BERLIN (REUTERS) - Germany hopes to launch a smartphone app within weeks to help trace coronavirus infections, after a broad political consensus emerged that adopting an approach pioneered by Singapore can be effective without invading people's privacy.

Germans are deeply suspicious of digital surveillance, and the use of individual smartphone location data to track the spread of the pandemic would be illegal under national and European Union privacy laws.

But a fast-moving debate has yielded agreement across party lines that it would be useful and acceptable to track close-proximity Bluetooth "handshakes" between smartphones.

That would resemble Singapore's TraceTogether app, which records the recent history of such contacts on a device. Should the smartphone's owner test positive for Covid-19, the respiratory illness the coronavirus can cause, that data could be downloaded so that contact-tracing teams can quickly get in touch with others at risk.

"We are confident we can release the solution in the next few weeks," said the Fraunhofer Institute for Telecoms, Heinrich Hertz Institute (HHI).

The HHI, one of Germany's institutes for applied research, said it was working with others across Europe to develop an app that would enable the proximity and duration of contact between people to be saved for two weeks on cell phones anonymously and without the use of location data.

"The prerequisite for such an application is full compliance with German data protection laws and usage on a voluntary basis," the HHI said in response to a Reuters inquiry.

The Robert Koch Institute, which is coordinating Germany's national coronavirus health response, welcomed the development work being done by the HHI but declined further comment.

The head of the Robert Koch Institute, Lothar Wieler, has warned that Germany is still at the beginning of the pandemic and its hospitals could find their capacity to treat patients exhausted. It has reported 57,298 coronavirus cases, with 455 deaths.

Health Minister Jens Spahn has called for an urgent debate on the use of smartphone technology to manage the coronavirus once containment efforts - which include school closures and bans on meeting in groups - have succeeded in "flattening" the curve of new infections.

He has won support from the Social Democrats, the junior partner in Angela Merkel's coalition government, and the opposition Greens, traditionally strong advocates of data privacy.

Germany's data protection commissioner, Ulrich Kelber, has supported the use of location and contact data shared on a voluntary basis, describing it as "incredibly useful".

Privacy advocates see no inherent contradiction between smartphone tracking and data protection and say that, done the right way, such contact tracing can make a valuable contribution to containing the coronavirus.

"Rapid contact tracing is a central precondition for it to be possible to loosen the current lockdown in the foreseeable future," academics Johannes Abeler and Matthias Baecker, and privacy campaigner Ulf Buermeyer, wrote for Netzpolitik.org.

https://www.straitstimes.com/world/europe/germany-aims-to-launch-singapore-style-coronavirus-app-in-weeks?utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=STFB&utm_source=Facebook#Echobox=1585611398

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Govt developing wearable device on lanyard as alternative to TraceTogether app: Vivian Balakrishnan

Quote

In an interview with Sky News Australia on May 22, Vivian responded to presenter Annelise Nielson, who asked about the number of Singaporeans who downloaded the app, citing a figure of 20 per cent.

Vivian said that it has gone up a little, with 1.5 million downloads, which is between 20 to 25 per cent of Singapore's population.

Quote

Vivian acknowledged that the government has received feedback about how the app impacts battery life through its use of Bluetooth proximity data.

https://mothership.sg/2020/05/vivian-balakrishnan-trace-together/

 

bye bye TraceTogether ... 

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