Day: April 27, 2020

A common EU toolbox for contact tracing

Jonathan DonnerIdentity and Privacy
Coronavirus: An EU approach for efficient contact tracing
Coronavirus: An EU approach for efficient contact tracing apps to support gradual lifting of confinement measures

“Welcoming the toolbox, Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton said: “Contact tracing apps to limit the spread of coronavirus can be useful, especially as part of Member States’ exit strategies. However, strong privacy safeguards are a pre-requisite for the uptake of these apps, and therefore their usefulness. While we should be innovative and make the best use of technology in fighting the pandemic, we will not compromise on our values and privacy requirements.”“

European Union Press Release 16 April 2020

Change Model: Standards and common code

Limiting the Apple/Google Contact Tracer to the Crisis Period Only

Jonathan DonnerIdentity and Privacy
Apple and Google pledge to shut down coronavirus tracker when pandemic ends
representatives from each company pledged for the first time to disable the service after the outbreak had been sufficiently contained. Such a decision would have to be made on a region-by-region basis, and it’s unclear how public health authorities would reach such a determination. However, the engineers stated definitively that the APIs were not intended to be maintained indefinitely.

“As part of the change, the daily key is now referred to as the “temporary tracing key,” and the long-term tracing key included in the original specification is no longer present.”

The Verge

Change Model: Code designed for obsolescence?