Anti-Corona Weapon: Singapore fights virus with smartphone app

Follow intimate contacts

March 22, 2020, 3:51 pm Reading time: 1 minute

In the fight against the corona virus, the Singapore government is using a new weapon: smartphone apps can track who is using the app. If infection occurs, contacts should be reliably identified and isolated.

SIngapur wants to use an app to fight the corona virus. The "tracetogether" application released by the Singapore Ministry of Health uses a smartphone's Bluetooth connection to identify people who have previously made physical contact with the application user. This method also works when others are also users of the application-this way, two devices can recognize each other and create a contact log. As a result, the application keeps anonymous contact information for all other application users whose users are close to about two meters.

Corona Crisis: These apps, games and streaming services are currently free article Free download and more Video streaming, games and applications are currently free in many cases. This is how companies can help in the coronavirus crisis. We show which offers are currently free. Watch now

To be successful, the application must be installed on as many devices as possible. The collected contact details will be saved on your local smartphone. According to Reuters, the government can use these tools only if there is a specific suspected infection. In addition, no location data should be collected, but contact information about physically close people should be collected. According to the Corona Card at John Hopkins University in Singapore, about 400 people have been infected with the virus so far.