Coronavirus apps won't be able to record users' location, Apple and Google say

Apple and Google are tightening the rules for smartphone apps that could notify people about exposure to the coronavirus after concern that the apps would violate privacy.

Public health agencies, academics and governors’ offices are racing to deploy the apps in the U.S. as one step toward relaxing stay-at-home orders.

The apps would use Bluetooth technology to privately record when phones are near each other, and to send anonymous notifications to people who have spent time with infected individuals. A handful of states have already rolled out test versions.

But the two tech companies said Monday they want to be sure the apps use only anonymous Bluetooth proximity data, not location data from cellular networks that could be more invasive.

In a statement, Google and Apple said they would prohibit apps from seeking permission to access a phone’s location services. Previously, the developers of a coronavirus tracing app had the option — and thousands of people had signed up for two such apps in Utah and North and South Dakota, Reuters reported.

The companies also released some mock-ups of what notifications could look like.

The apps would use Bluetooth technology to privately record when phones are near each other, and to send anonymous notifications to people who have spent time with infected individuals.Apple; Google

It wasn’t immediately clear what would happen to the two existing apps. They were still available Monday in Apple’s iOS App Store and Google’s Android Play Store. Apple and Google declined to comment on the apps specifically, and the governor’s offices in Utah and North Dakota didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. It may be that the apps can remain in use but won’t have the benefit of the two companies’ tools, known as application programming interfaces, or APIs.

The companies didn’t elaborate on their reasoning behind their decision other than to emphasize that they were protecting privacy.

But the decision underscored how much power the companies have amassed, creating online systems where often they get to write the rules that government authorities need to follow.

The two tech companies also added another sweeping rule, saying that they would allow only one app per country — or, maybe, one app per state or region — to use the software toolbox that they are jointly creating. The reason was to “promote high user adoption and

avoid fragmentation,” the companies said.

Experts have said that a coronavirus tracking-and-notification app might need adoption by some 60 percent of a given area in order to be truly useful.

source: nbcnews.com