Coronavirus: Apple, Google detail COVID-19 plans

Tech giants hope every smartphone in the world will become a weapon to fight COVID-19’s spread, but at what cost?

An Apple logo is seen in raindrops on a window outside an Apple Store at the Country Club Plaza shopping district in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)

Apple and Google have detailed their ambitious joint plans for so-called contact-tracing apps, which will record when users come into contact and warn them if they were nearby someone later diagnosed as positive for COVID-19.

The rare collaboration between the tech giants, first announced last week, could cover most of the world's smartphones and be a crucial tool for the Australian government – and governments worldwide – to stop the COVID-19 spread.

The new tie-up raises privacy concerns however, given Australia's competition watchdog is already taking on Google in court for how it's handled user location data in the past.

Spokesmen for both Apple and Google told The Australian in a briefing the tech will strictly require users to opt-in, and that privacy will be paramount.

The contact tracing functionality, which will be available from mid-May, uses Bluetooth, which is commonly used to connect headphones and other accessories, to send and receive anonymous signals from a users' smartphone to people nearby.

If someone nearby has later tested positive for COVID-19, the smartphone will alert everyone they've come into contact with to let them know, and what next steps take, such as self-isolating, notifying health officials and getting tested.

At first public health authorities will incorporate the contact tracing technology into their own apps, which will be able to downloaded from Apple and Google's app stores. The tech companies said that later, they will bake the technology into the phones' operating systems meaning an app download won't be needed.

In the traditional contact-tracing model, epidemiologists ask the newly diagnosed to recall where they have been and who they came into contact with. The goal is to identify, test and isolate those contacts quickly enough to slow an outbreak. It is less effective for fast-spreading diseases because conducting interviews and reaching contacts takes time.

US president Donald Trump described the proposed technology as 'amazing' on Thursday but added it raises 'constitutional problems'. He said he would 'take a look' at the functionality.

The Australian government has been contacted for comment to see whether the technology would be integrated into its COVID-19 app.

"The ACCC would expect to be notified of any conduct by companies that raises concerns under Australian competition law, including during the COVID-19 pandemic," an spokeswoman for the regulator said.

"Companies seeking to engage in such conduct can apply to the ACCC for authorisation. The ACCC will then assess whether the conduct is likely result in a net public benefit."

An Apple spokesman said the only public health authorities will be allowed access to the contact tracing API, that personally identifiable information – including location data – won't be collected, and that people who test positive are will only be identified to public health authorities – not to other users, Google or Apple.

The spokesman added that any data collected is processed on the device and doesn’t leave a user’s phone unless they choose to share it.

Additional reporting: Wall Street Journal.