Canada is the first to release the first major COVID Alert tracing app that makes use of the Apple-Google API!
COVID Alert Using Secure Technology
The Apple-Google API behind Canadas COVID Alert app makes use of Low Energy Bluetooth to passively communicate with other Android and iPhones you pass by day to day. If anyone is ever diagnosed with COVID-19, it is up to them to notify the app. The app then in turn is able to send out an alert to other devices you may have been in the proximity of for a period of time to warn them of possible exposure.
Security and privacy are paramount according to Apple and Google – I know.. me trusting Google is antithesis – but this is for the health of everyone. There is no location data exchanged during communications, identifiers are on a rolling schedule, and everything is kept local on device and is RSSI secure. Health industry-standard Conventional Contact Tracing forms the backbone of the technology, but instead of manual collection of data, it’s using the technology the most of use have on hand at all times, our phones. Each day the data is uploaded to app developers servers, in this case, The Government Of Canada, and compiled to look for exposure. That data is then sent out and people are notified if they’ve been exposed.
It’s very important to realize there is NO identity information released, it is completely anonymous.
Set up is incredibly easy and doesn’t involve any personal data except postal code.
Tracing Technology Our Early
It seems this is a similar implementation that Apple plans for its future tracking tag technology, the rumoured AirTags devices. They are reported to use Low Energy Bluetooth and/or Ultra-Wideband technology that is found in the latest iPhones. Like the COVID 19 Alert app, it would rely on anonymous beacon communication between iPhones to allow you to track them, even when you are on the other side of the planet. The act of people passing by your keys left in Walmart would allow you to track them with the new Find My app in iOS 14. The technology will be able to give you distance, direction and elevation information as well, making locating your missing items incredibly easy.
If You Are Diagnosed With VOCID-19
In the event you get sick and are diagnosed with COVID-19, it’s up to you to let the App know to begin the process of notification. Upon being informed by your medical practitioner, they will give you a One Time Key to enter into the app. Open it and tap on the bottom for the menu, tap on “Enter your one-time key”, you’ll be asked to agree to allow people to be notified and approve the sharing of the random codes. That’s it, kick back in your 14-days of isolation and make sure you have loads of entertainment. We wish you all health, and thank you for helping to keep others safe!
It should be noted, as of the time of this writing, the Calgary area is not yet able to give those one-time codes… hopefully.. soon? Or this has been about as useful as a screen door on a submarine?
Contact us if you have any questions regarding the Canada COVID Alert app!
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