The Norwegian Infection Tracking app, which will be launching soon, is partially similar to how the TraceTogether app works in Singapore, where over one million of the country's 5.5 million inhabitants have downloaded it voluntarily. The app was developed by a state-run tech company in collaboration with the Singaporean health authority.
The data is stored locally
Unlike the Norwegian app, the data in TraceTogether is stored locally on the phone. Only when someone has been diagnosed with Covid-19 is the question asked if they use the app and want to share the data on the phone. In such cases, the data is sent away centrally so that other app users whose phones have been close enough to the infected for a long time to receive a warning.
Björn Lindfors, a Swedish in the tech industry who lives in Singapore, is one of those who have great faith in such technology to fight the spread of infection.
- The interesting thing about Singapore's app is that it is open source, which means that anyone can go in and see what this application does with all the data. And it is completely anonymized.
Several countries are hooked on the idea
Different countries are now developing their own different solutions for infection tracking apps. Admittedly, a European standardization work is underway, which aims to allow such apps to talk to each other so that infection can be traced across national borders. The authorities behind TraceTogether have recently opened up details about the technology used for this kind of mobile contact tracking so that others can copy it.
- Singapore's ambition is for it to become a global standard. That's what it takes to reach its full potential. Imagine if everyone traveling around the world had had this app on their phones, then you could really trace the infection in a way that is not possible today, says Björn Lindfors, technology partner at Antler in Singapore.
As a Singapore resident, he does like so many other citizens and follows the social media authorities to get the latest news about Covid-19 in the country.
- They use Facebook, WhatsApp, Telegram, Twitter and more for daily updates. It is very fast and transparent communication, which reduces the risk of panic and the influence of fake news, he concludes.