Apple, Google release technology for pandemic apps

Apple and Google on Wednesday released long-awaited smartphone techlogy to automatically tify people if y might have been exposed to coronavirus.

companies said 22 countries and several U.S. states are alrey planning to build voluntary phone apps using ir software. It relies on Bluetooth wireless techlogy to detect when someone who downloed app has spent time near ar app user who later tests positive for virus.

Many governments have alrey tried, mostly unsuccessfully, to roll out ir own phone apps to fight spre of COVID-19 pandemic. Many of those apps have encountered technical problems on Apple and Android phones and haven't been widely opted. y often use GPS to track people's location, which Apple and Google are banning from ir new tool because of privacy and accuracy concerns.

Public health ncies from Germany to states of Alabama and South Carolina have been waiting to use Apple-Google model, while or governments have said tech giants' privacy restrictions will be a hindrance because public health workers will have access to data.

companies said y're t trying to replace contact tracing, a pillar of infection control that involves trained public health workers reaching out to people who may have been exposed to an infected person. But y said ir automatic “exposure tification” system can augment that process and slow spre of COVID-19 by virus carriers who are interacting with strangers and aren't yet showing symptoms.

identity of app users will be protected by encryption and anymous identifier beacons that change frequently.

“User option is key to success and we believe that se strong privacy protections are also best way to encour use of se apps,” companies said in a joint statement Wednesday.

statement Wednesday also included remarks from state officials in rth Dakota, Alabama and South Carolina signaling that y plan to use it.

"We invite or states to join us in leveraging smartphone techlogies to strengn existing contact tracing efforts, which are critical to getting communities and ecomies back up and running,” said rth Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, a Republican.

rth Dakota h alrey launched a location-tracking app that about 4% of state residents are using, higher than or U.S. states with similar apps but falling far short of participation rate that experts say is needed to make such techlogy useful.

Tim Brookins, CEO of ProudCrowd, a startup that developed rth Dakota's app, said Wednesday that rth Dakotans will w be asked to downlo two complementary apps — his model, to help public health workers track where COVID-19 patients have been, and Apple-Google model, to privately tify people who might have been exposed to virus.