How an Anti-Coronavirus App turns Austrians into Cyber Security Experts
Who reads the terms and conditions when signing up for apps or platforms? You? Well, pat yourself on the back. You are one of few.
Most of us use Social platforms or Apps on a daily basis. To use these platforms and apps you often have to do one thing: Sign up!
First and Last Name, birthdate, address, phone number, email address are only some of the infos they ask of us.
We give our personal info freely, because else we couldn’t use the platform to share our family and food pics with friends and familie.
One last click from our new account away the “Terms & Conditions” await us. For most of us just an annoying extra step. We tick the box without even considering to read what we are virtually signing. Which means that most of us don’t know if we have just sold a kidney, our firstborn or even our right to vote.
When the Anti-Coronavirus App “Stopp Corona” was presented in Austria it caused an outcry. Suddenly personal data became the most precious good.
Stopp-Corona
Developed by the Austrian Red Cross the app “Stopp-Corona” functions as a digital handshake, marking every encounter with other app users. The hope is to therefore gain back control over the chain of infections.
By using ever-changing TANs, the encounters are marked anonymously and no personal data is collected. You simply download the app, without having to give any information, and can immediately use it.
Should you find out that you are infected you can inform all your recent contacts who then can self isolate and stop the virus from spreading.
If one of your recent contacts finds out about an infection he can also inform you and other contacts throughout the app anonymously.
Both ways no personal data is exchanged and the name of a possible infected is also not mentioned.
Data experts complement the app for its data security and also mentioned the fact that in times like these, health should go first.
Still, Austrians have been skeptical of virtually tracking contacts and therefore staying on track with possible infections.
Lifting the Shutdown
With 14,040 confirmed infections (as of April 13th) Austria managed to contain the chain of infections and currently has the upper hand over the virus.
This could change rapidly, since the shutdown, which pushed Austria to a social and economic minimum since March 13th, has been lifted. Shops smaller than 400 square meters as well as hardware stores and garden centers are open as of tomorrow. How that affects the social distancing and well-contained infections will be seen in the next couple of weeks.
Using an App to track contacts does sound weird in regards to a democratic country. But if it helps contain a virus that is especially dangerous for risk groups, why suddenly become so fussy about your data? Especially now that getting back to normal is linked to a dangerous spread.
