Are you Going to use the COVIDsafe App?

[serfty]

I did research this a fair bit and I decided I was happy to:

Privacy Policy

The COVIDSafe app speeds up contacting people exposed to coronavirus (COVID-19). This helps us support and protect you, your friends and family. Please read the content on this page before downloading.

www.health.gov.au

 

[p--and--t]

FYI: I noticed a bug fix 1.1 version of the app released tonight for iOS (Apple products)

 

[Archphoto]

Massive shout out to Qantas for getting behind Covidsafe.
And yes I’m well aware that their intentions will be driven by way more than the public health perspective.
As a simple ED Doc on the frontline I am very grateful for their support to get as many people to download. Here’s hoping others follow.View attachment 217169

Agree! I too thought it was well placed and sure, it's obviously in their interests as well, but if it encourages more Aussies to download the app - it kills two birds with one stone.

 

[Quickstatus]

I did not follow my rule for downloading software - v1.0 is buggy so try not to download 1.0
I wonder what 1.1 fixed?

 

[Archphoto]

I did not follow my rule for downloading software - v1.0 is buggy so try not to download 1.0
I wonder what 1.1 fixed?

New screen:

COVIDSafe logo rotates and the statement: "COVIDSafe is active. No further action is required."

An improvement for anyone worried that it may not be working - much better than the woman holding the pulsing shield.

The "Has a health official contacted you?" has changed too - no longer has a woman there with a big blue button, now it's rather less obtrusive, and hopefully helps those who don't read instructions, to not click on it.

 

[moa999]

From the tear down of the Android version, the app logo and some of the wording, including it no longer saying "You have Covid" if you play around with the Health care worker section and press Yes.
Nothing major

 

[Anna]

Massive shout out to Qantas for getting behind Covidsafe.

This is a bit OT because it's a question rather than a comment on the app, but a couple of months ago when there was a lot of media hysteria about infected people on flights and needing to trace pax who had sat in nearby rows - was there ever any proven virus transmission between pax who sat near each other on a plane? I thought I had read somewhere that there were no such cases of proven transmission in Australia, but again that would only have been from the media.

 

[Princess Fiona]

This is a bit OT because it's a question rather than a comment on the app, but a couple of months ago when there was a lot of media hysteria about infected people on flights and needing to trace pax who had sat in nearby rows - was there ever any proven virus transmission between pax who sat near each other on a plane? I thought I had read somewhere that there were no such cases of proven transmission in Australia, but again that would only have been from the media.

I have not heard of any in Australia.
Some international of pax to crew.

 

[drron]

This is a bit OT because it's a question rather than a comment on the app, but a couple of months ago when there was a lot of media hysteria about infected people on flights and needing to trace pax who had sat in nearby rows - was there ever any proven virus transmission between pax who sat near each other on a plane? I thought I had read somewhere that there were no such cases of proven transmission in Australia, but again that would only have been from the media.

This is really hard to know.There certainly have been quite a few crew who have been infected and often blamed on passengers but often like this incident.

'We’re a part of the spread': flight attendant's guilt over Covid-19

Gabrielle Wilson of Air Canada started feeling ill after flying back from Frankfurt. After a positive test and quarantine she is left with anxiety and guilt for infecting her family

www.theguardian.com

So basically most of the crew tested positive.Now the passengers were almost certainly tested as they were contacts but there is no report of infected passengers.Likely that the crew were infected at the layover or by one of their own.

On top of that other Aviation staff get infected too-

17 air traffic control centers have been temporarily closed after workers tested positive for coronavirus, highlighting a vulnerability in air travel

The spread of the novel coronavirus into FAA air traffic facilities has the ability to grind air travel in the US to a halt if not properly contained.

www.businessinsider.com.au

and they were not in the planes.

There was a report of an Air NZ FA who worked whilst infected.No reports of any pax on his flights infected but dozens were at a wedding reception he attended.

And the IATA which would say it was safe.

Passengers aren't catching COVID-19 on planes, IATA claims

The industry is fighting the prospect of social distancing rules that it says would drive up fares by more than 50pc in the Asia-Pacific region.

www.afr.com

Interesting though they were able to follow up on the contact tracing on flights that infected patients had travelled on and no reports of other pax testing positive.

 

[jb747]

Perhaps we’ve spoken too soon with regards to the app functionality on iPhones. It looks like it doesn’t work if the screen is inactive. As that is probably just about all of the time, then that means the app is pretty much useless as it stands. I expect that also means that our tests of battery life are also invalid.

Apple has said that it will produce tools for tracking apps as part of iOS, but that is currently only in beta forms of the software, and the app would then have to be modified to use them.

 

[get me outta here]

I wonder if we’ll need a new option on our poll, ‘Have you changed your mind and deleted the app’.

 

[Princess Fiona]

Perhaps we’ve spoken too soon with regards to the app functionality on iPhones. It looks like it doesn’t work if the screen is inactive. As that is probably just about all of the time, then that means the app is pretty much useless as it stands. I expect that also means that our tests of battery life are also invalid.

Apple has said that it will produce tools for tracking apps as part of iOS, but that is currently only in beta forms of the software, and the app would then have to be modified to use them.

Do you have a source for this ?
Cheers

 

[moa999]

Do you have a source for this ?
Cheers

That was known from early on - the Singapore app on which ours is based has similar issues.
It's a function of how Apple handles background apps - will require the release of the new Apple API which is still in test.
Theres still some collection Android-Apple, but yes Apple-Apple if both sides are backgrounded (as many people would do throughout the day) isn't working.
But as discussed upthread it's simply an additional tool. It also won't track someone you only spend 10min with, or someone running by.

Best source for all of the various issues with the app (mainly for the Android version that has had most of its code extracted) is detailed here which combines Tweets and an issues paper under development by an open source community.

COVID-19 Senate Hearing

docs.google.com

Probably the only one I would be slightly concerned about is it's recording Phone Model information. In most cases this will just be iPhone X, but appears where people have named their phone it might be recording Joe Bloggs iPhone X.

 

[jakeseven7]

Reaching 5.1 million of 16 million smartphones is a good achievement so far!

Let’s hope the laggards continue to adopt as they realise their friends and family are using it and not being carted off to secret government locations for questioning

 

[JohnK]

Who said the Australia card campaign was a failure?

I'm not interested in another tracking mechanism unless it becomes compulsory for future travel but in a way I'm glad the majority are complying as it will highlight they are not practicing social distancing when out and about.

 

[serfty]

...
I'm not interested in another tracking mechanism unless it becomes compulsory for future travel but in a way I'm glad the majority are complying as it will highlight they are not practicing social distancing when out and about.

It is NOT a "tracking mechanism" - it merely records other phones running the app that have been approximately 1.5 metres or less apart, for a period of 15 minutes or more.

People can indeed be practising social distancing and still have contact recorded.

Covidsafe app: how Australia’s coronavirus contact tracing app works, what it does, downloads and problems

The app will ask for your name (or pseudonym), age range, postcode and phone number. Scott Morrison says the Australian government’s covid safe tracking app won’t be mandatory to download and install, but its uptake numbers could play a part in easing Covid-19 restrictions

www.theguardian.com

 

[jb747]

Do you have a source for this ?

This is one article that discusses it, and it has a video that shows the Bluetooth connection between two phones disconnecting the instant the screen it put to sleep. It is a general blutooth issue, that is designed into the operating system.

Without Apple and Google, the UK’s contact-tracing app is in trouble

The UK tries to go it alone, once again

www.theverge.com

There is also information on why this is happening. Thank advertisers again.

So, basically, you need the app in the foreground, and your screen must never go to sleep.

And closer to home.

Covidsafe app is not working properly on iPhones, authorities admit

An update to integrate the Google-Apple framework should fix the issue, MPs told

www.theguardian.com

 

[jb747]

It is NOT a "tracking mechanism" - it merely records other phones running the app that have been approximately 1.5 metres or less apart, for a period of 15 minutes or more.

It wouldn’t be if it held the data on the phone. Once it uploads it, I’m sure data analysis would allow some form on tracking.

And the 1.5 metres is a guess. It records every phone that it’s able to lock on to. Bluetooth doesn‘t measure range.

 

[SydneySwan]

I did not follow my rule for downloading software - v1.0 is buggy so try not to download 1.0
I wonder what 1.1 fixed?

No mention of whether the phone number validation algorithm has been fixed.

 

[Max Samuels]

ok, it's the news.com.au so ? accuracy. However

What restaurants could look like after COVID-19

Disposable menus, social distancing in waiting areas and partitions across tables could be the future of dining in Australia when restaurants re-open.

www.news.com.au

"Disposable menus, social distancing in waiting areas and partitions across tables could be the future of dining in Australia when restaurants re-open. Restaurant and Catering Australia has issued its reopening guidelines to National Cabinet, which include a series of “practical, low-cost measures” to get restaurants running again.
The measures include:
• 1.5-metre distance between tables
• All patrons must have the COVIDSafe app or record their name and number at the place they dine in so they can be contacted later if needed"

Or.... we could all take a deep breath and say "man - that wasn't as bad as we thought it was... let's go back to life as we did before. Just like we did after every other plague/disease etc throughout history. But let's make sure our GOVERNMENT has a plan so that next time this happens, they can deal with it better and not terrorise and terrify the population"

 

[Pushka]

Or.... we could all take a deep breath and say "man - that wasn't as bad as we thought it was... let's go back to life as we did before. Just like we did after every other plague/disease etc throughout history. But let's make sure our GOVERNMENT has a plan so that next time this happens, they can deal with it better and not terrorise and terrify the population"

Maybe try telling that to the folks in UK, USA, Italy, now unfolding in Russia. Those who haven't died or have lost a family member. Good luck with that search. They may not agree.

I guess it's hard for some to recognise that preventive action does exactly that. And weirdly, the opposition have demonstrated strong bipartisan support for the policies leaving you with no wriggle room anymore in Australia. Off you go, find a country.