England and Wales finally get contact-tracing app after months of delays — bit shit, but it’ll do
The system looks a marked improvement on the government’s previous efforts
Security concerns
But critics fear the use of QR codes isneither private nor secure. Attila Tomaschek, Digital Privacy Expert at digital advocacy group ProPrivacy, said that scammers can easily fake codes to lead users to malicious websites that install malware on their devices, and that the Chinese government’had used the codes to track residents through its contact-tracing app
“Not only can QR code check-ins paint an intricately detailed picture of a user’s location history (precisely what proximity tracking via Bluetooth is designed to prevent), but it can also be an extremely attractive attack vector for scammers to exploit,” he said.
These shortcomings led ProPrivacy to give the UK contact-tracing appa privacy scoreof 4/10. That’s certainly not great but it’s pretty average in the rankings. Switzerland’sSwissCovid-App received the sole 10/10 score, while a raft of apps including those used in China, India, and Russia were given zeroes.
However, other tech experts have praised the app’s security measures. Rachel Coldicutt, the former CEO of “responsible tech” think tank Doteveryone, said she was satisfied with the decentralized, anonymized way in which the system handles data.
Further support came from Adam Wagner, a human rights barrister at Doughty Street Chambers, who noted that anyone who doesn’t use the QR codes at venues will have to give their personal details instead.
Contact-tracing’s potential
There are also concerns that the app produces false-positive results that will lead people to self-isolate who aren’t at risk and that public mistrust over the government’s handling of test and trace will make uptake slow.
In addition, people with some of the latest Huawei handsets or the iPhone 6 and earlier versions of Apple smartphones won’t be able to download the app, cutting out a large number of users — particularly older people and those on low incomes. Only aboutone in 10 people installed the appduring a recent trial in Newham, one of London’s most deprived and ethnically diverse boroughs.
The government will hope that a TV advertising campaign with the strapline “Protect your loved ones. Get the app” and the agreement of major network operators not to charge people for using the app will boost the uptake.
Even if they attract the millions of users that the app needs to make it useful, theappis heavily reliant on an effective testing program, whichleaked documents suggestis currently in chaos. But the app does look like a big improvement on its predecessors. There’s no legal requirement to use it, but I’ve downloaded it — and hope others do the same.
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Story byThomas Macaulay
Thomas is a senior reporter at TNW. He covers European tech, with a focus on AI, cybersecurity, and government policy.Thomas is a senior reporter at TNW. He covers European tech, with a focus on AI, cybersecurity, and government policy.
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