Google says the first COVID-19 contact tracing apps in the US should roll out in the next few weeks, several months after the search giant partnered with Apple
Google says the first COVID-19 contact tracing apps in the US should roll out in the next few weeks, several months after the search giant partnered with Apple on a cross-platform exposure notifications system. The technology, which the two firms offered to public health authorities, allows iOS and Android devices to securely check in with each other when within close physical distance, data which can be essential for understand coronavirus spread. The theory is straightforward. An app – designed by healthcare authorities – runs in the background on the phone, sharing a unique identifier with other phones physically nearby. That maintains a rolling log of such contacts, which can later be optionally shared if the individual is diagnosed as having contracted COVID-19. Should that be the case, all of the people who were nearby when that person was potentially contagious can be notified, and advised to seek their own coronavirus testing.
