COVIDSafe app: Issues preventing registrations as Federal Government calls for more downloads
More than 4.5 million people have downloaded the COVID-19 contact tracing app, but multiple flaws are stopping new registrations and putting privacy at risk.
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Tech experts examining the coronavirus contact tracing app say they’ve discovered privacy flaws and multiple issues stopping people from signing up.
Software developer Geoff Huntley has led volunteer efforts over the past week to examine the COVIDSafe app and identify issues with the aim of helping the government improve it.
“I still maintain the app is safe to install,” he said on Monday.
“But one of the things we’ve found in there will require every country that has used the Bluetooth implementation from Singapore to update their privacy policies and release new versions of the application.”
Developers have also identified a number of issues preventing people from registering.
You can’t register if your phone is connected to Wi-Fi, it’s only available in Australian stores and roaming international numbers can’t register – so foreign travellers can’t use it – and there is no option for people using tablets to have a robot to call their landline with a registration PIN.
Mr Huntley points to hundreds of reviews in the Google and Apple app stores where people complain they haven’t been able to register.
“Meanwhile, last night we had a tweet go out (from a minister) saying if you want to go to the footy, you need to download the app,” he said.
“I think the amount of downloads is a BS vanity metric and what we should be looking at is some sort of daily active users (figure).”
A spokesman for Government Services Minister Stuart Robert said the figures quoted reflected people who had both downloaded and registered.
“More than 4.5 million Australians have registered for the COVIDSafe app, which has received widespread support and endorsement from across the Australian community including public health officials, as well as information technology and cybersecurity experts,” the spokesman said.
Mr Huntley also points out that anyone checking out all the areas of the app will easily end up on a page with the first line of text: “You have tested positive for COVID-19.”
“It has caused public panic and it can still cause public panic,” he said.
But he says multiple attempts to contact government agencies to report issues went unacknowledged until he was interviewed in media on Monday morning.
He is puzzled by the lack of engagement on social media or replies to app store reviews and says the apparent lack of interest in having the wider tech community help via a commonly used “bug bounty” system is unusual.
A spokesman for the Digital Transformation Agency says bugs should be reported via the app’s “report an issue” function or by emailing support@covidsafe.gov.au
“The app has received widespread support and endorsement from the information technology community,” he told AAP.
“As would be expected the app will be updated as required.”
Mr Robert’s spokesman said the app’s source code would be released in coming weeks.
NEW COVIDSAFE PLEA AS MORE DOWNLOADS NEEDED
The Australian Government is today sending out a second round of coronavirus text messages to the public, this time urging recipients to download and install its COVIDSafe app.
The SMS, sent 26 days after reminding Australians to “stay home this Easter,” includes a link Google Android and Apple iOS versions of the app that is designed to help track whether users have come into contact with coronavirus using encrypted Bluetooth communications.
More than 4.25 Australians have reportedly downloaded the COVIDSafe app since its April 26 launch, though Prime Minister Scott Morrison said “there needs to be millions more” to accelerate the reopening of businesses and lowering of restrictions.
The federal government looking to add a further two million registrations ahead of next Friday’s meeting between Scott Morrison and the state and territory leaders.
In a report in The Australian , Health Minister Greg Hunt said the willingness of Australians to embrace the app would be a significant factor in the national cabinet’s decision on how quickly to ease restrictions for Australians.
“This has helped bring forward national cabinet consideration of easing restrictions by a week,” Mr Hunt told The Australian.
Thank-you Australia for helping to stop the spread of COVID-19.
— Greg Hunt (@GregHuntMP) May 3, 2020
The COVIDSafe App will help protect us, our family and friends, and our frontline health care heroes.
DOWNLOAD LINK - https://t.co/vn3NoeQpal pic.twitter.com/9dIrKJ8s6P
“Australians are doing a great job in all aspects of responding to the COVID-19 crisis,” Mr Hunt said.
Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy said the more people who downloaded the app, “the more bold” the government would be in easing restrictions.
AFP INVESTIGATES ‘SCAM MESSAGES’
It comes as the Australian Federal Police is investigating a series of “scam messages” that appeared to use the Government’s COVIDSafe app as bait, Health Minister Greg Hunt said last week.
But the images, which looked like SMS messages sent to mobile phones, may never have been sent at all, and were instead created as a fake scam.
First appearing on Facebook and later shared to Twitter, the messages said the COVIDSafe app, which does not use GPS location services, had detected a user was “20+km from your nominated home address” and advised the recipient to call Centrelink.
It even included Centrelink’s legitimate phone number.
But the “screenshot” appeared to omit some details and create others that would not have existed in a genuine text message.
While the messages appeared to be jokes, Mr Hunt said hoaxes about the coronavirus were “deeply un-Australian” and could be considered an offence as a misuse of telecommunications services.
“This case has already been referred to the Federal Police for investigation and that investigation has begun, and anybody who is found responsible will be charged with a significant criminal offence,” he said.
The COVIDSafe app, released on Sunday, has been downloaded more than 2.4 million times, Mr Hunt said.
The app uses encrypted Bluetooth communications between phones to register when smartphones have been within 1.5m of one another for at least 15 minutes and can be used by health officials if a user tests positive to COVID-19.
EASY EXPLAINER: HOW THE COVIDSAFE APP WORKS
About 4.25 million people have also downloaded the COVID-19 tracing app, which aims to help health officials identify people who may have come into contact with someone with the disease.
Called COVIDSafe, the voluntary app became available for download and registration on Sunday evening and has been backed by doctors, nursing, business and banking groups.
Here’s what you need to know:
WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THE COVIDSAFE APP?
To identify people who may have come into contact with someone who has COVID-19 so that they can be advised to take measures to help stop the spread of the disease or get tested.
HOW CAN I DOWNLOAD THE APP?
Search for “COVIDSafe” on the Apple App Store, or on Google Play on your phone to download the app.
Once downloaded, you will need to open the app and register your details.
The app requires users to input their:
– Mobile phone number – so they can be contacted if needed for contact tracing.
– Name – so the relevant health officials can confirm they are speaking to the right person, although the Health Minister says you can use a fake name if you want.
– Age range – so health officials can prioritise cases for contact tracing.
– Postcode – to make sure health officials from the right state and territory are dealing with your case.
HOW DOES THE APP WORK?
COVIDSafe recognises other devices with the app installed via your phone’s bluetooth connection.
“To be effective, users should have the app running in the background when they are coming into contact with others,” Government Services Minister Stuart Robert said.
“Your phone does not need to be unlocked for the app to work.”
Mr Robert said the app then securely makes a “digital handshake”, which notes the date and time, distance and duration of the contact.
“All information collected by the app is securely encrypted and stored in the app on the user’s phone,” he said.
No location data will be collected at any time.
If an app user tests positive for COVID-19, health officials will ask permission to upload the data to a secure digital storage system.
The data can then be used to support health officials in contract tracing. They will not name the person who was infected.
Chief Medical Officer, Brendan Murphy said COVIDSafe was be a major tool in streamlining the process of identifying contacts after a person tests positive for coronavirus.
“Finding out quickly means you can quarantine yourself or be treated much faster, protecting your family and friends from possible infection, and slowing the spread of the virus,” he said.
“Without this technology, health officials have to rely on people being able to remember who they have been around, and being able to provide contact details for those people.”
WHAT DOES THE ‘UPLOAD MY INFORMATION’ BUTTON DO?
The ‘Upload My Information’ button has caused some confusion among COVIDSafe users.
Clicking it tells users they have tested positive to COVID-19.
The button should only be pressed if an app user is advised to do so by a health professional.
The data can then be used to support health officials in contract tracing. They will not name the person who was infected.
SHOULD I BE WORRIED ABOUT MY DATA?
Mr Robert said unless a person is diagnosed with COVID-19, no contact information collected in the app is disclosed or able to be accessed.
“Once the (infected) person agrees and uploads the data, only the relevant state or territory public health officials will have access to information,” he said.
“The only information they are allowed to access is that of close contacts – when a person has come within approximately 1.5 metres of another app user for 15 minutes or more – in their jurisdiction.”
Contact data stored on a device will be deleted after 21 days, and all data stored will be deleted once the pandemic has concluded.
Personal information collected via COVIDSafe will handled in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 and the Biosecurity Determination 2020.
There will be criminal penalties and anyone breaches someone’s privacy.
Originally published as COVIDSafe app: Issues preventing registrations as Federal Government calls for more downloads
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