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Two campuses of the University of California will test smartphone use to notify users if they are at high risk of contracting COVID-19, which could lead to infection. It is important to note that privacy and security are fundamental to developing technology that does not collect location data from any device and never divulges user identities.
The initiative uses Google / Apple Exposure Notification
(GAEN) technology on smartphones to complement the important work of human
contact trackers and help further reduce the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the virus
that causes COVID-19. The main goal of this pilot is to determine if the use of
this smartphone technology can encourage users to respond more quickly to
high-risk exposure by isolating themselves and gaining additional clinical
resources that are key to limiting the spread of COVID-19. ...
The limited pilot program will be rolled out gradually at
the University of California, San Diego later this month. The University of
California, San Francisco plans to begin using this technology in a few weeks
for students, faculty and staff participating in on-site events at specific
locations. These pilot projects will allow volunteers to use the technology to
receive automatic notifications from smartphones about possible contact with
other registered users diagnosed with COVID-19, regardless of whether the users
know each other.
In a privacy-focused approach, users decide whether they
want to share a confirmed positive test result with the app and determine if
they want to share it with other users. State and university epidemiologists
will study the results of the pilot to determine how to optimize
smartphone-based technology and whether it should be adopted more widely.
“A pilot voluntary participation program will be launched
for students and staff on the campuses of the University of California, San
Diego and the University of California, San Francisco. If the pilot is
successful, it will lay the groundwork for the state to offer voluntary
notifications of infection to all Californians using this free technology for
smartphones, ”said Dr. Christopher Longhurst, director of information
technology at the University of California, San Diego. "Google / Apple
Exposure Notification (GAEN) Express Tools offers a high-tech,
privacy-preserving solution that automates notifications for you without
revealing who you are or exposing unnecessary digital data that could
compromise your privacy."
“We will likely need multiple approaches to impact reporting
to meet the preferences and needs of individual California residents. This is a
promising avenue to explore in addition to traditional methods, ”said Dr.
Carrie L. Byington, executive vice president of public health at the University
of California and an expert on infectious diseases. “Fortunately, UC has the
ability to work on multiple fronts in the fight against COVID-19.”
Google / Apple technology uses Bluetooth to communicate with
other nearby Bluetooth-enabled devices, such as smartphones of people who are
simultaneously traveling on an airplane, queuing at the grocery store, or
sharing space in a classroom or bedroom. ... When a person decides to use the
Google / Apple notification system, the user's phone sends a random
identification number (ID) to other phones in the area. When phones are within
6 feet of each other, they record each other's IDs without being associated
with names or locations.
If a person is analyzed with COVID-19, they can happily
enter a key code indicating they have tested positive. This approach will
generate an anonymous alert for other users based on proximity and duration of
exposure.