HYDERABAD : Unless you are living under a rock, and not at home, as you should be, then you would have definitely heard of the Indian government’s ArogyaSetu app. Even the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday while addressing the nation urged Indians to use the ArogyaSetu application and “inspire others to download the app as well”.
We at Hyderabad Express decided to check out the app to see what the hullabaloo is all about.
ArogyaSetu, a mobile app (Android and iOS) developed by the National Informatics Centre, a part of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India is said to help citizens identify their risk of contracting Coronavirus. It has notched up more than 10 million downloads since its launch six days back.
The app interface is available in 11 languages, and alerts users, without disclosing identity, if they are in the vicinity of someone who’s tested positive. The data collected from the app helps the government trace contacts of those infected to execute quarantining. It is designed to keep a user informed in case they crossed within 6-feet of someone who has tested positive. The tracking is done through a Bluetooth and location generated social graph.
This is where the privacy issue crops up. There is very little clarity on who will have access to this data. There is such a dearth of information that it isn’t clear how the main objective, of alerting people about positive cases, will work. However, the AarogyaSetu app has also raised privacy concerns. Some experts have pointed out that since the app uses GPS, in addition to Bluetooth, for identifying the potential spread of the infection, it could be used for exactly revealing the location of users.Says Som Chebolu, CEO, Bridgesoft Solutions Pvt Ltd, “There is nothing to use in the app. We just register and take the health assessment once in a while. I’m not comfortable when someone tracks my location all the time.”
ArogyaSetu’s terms of use were unclear on several aspects including how long data would be stored, what would happen to it once the pandemic ceased, or who else the data would be shared with.
About the key feature of detecting a Covid-19 patient, another user, a journalist from a leading newspaper commented, “I don’t know about the privacy part. I have downloaded the app, but I haven’t stepped out to see if I have crossed paths with anyone who has the infection.”
A photographer from the city said though he has the app installed and was at King Koti Hospital on Tuesday in close vicinity of a victim of the virus, but the app did not alert/beep him. He reckons, “Perhaps, the app is not doing what it is meant to.”
Haseeb Anwar, a mutual fund distributor, registered on the app says, “I will definitely leave the bluetooth ‘on’. I would like to know if I come across any person with Covid-19.”
As per the statement by PMO, the app could also “subsequently act as e-pass to facilitate travel”. Zainuddin Aarif, a businessman commented on this, “After I entered my information, it said I am safe. Probably, this is more useful for those who have to go out daily. Maybe, later it will act like ‘a pass’ to go to public places, if you have the ‘safe tag’.”
Ease of use
The app itself is pretty uncomplicated to use. It has a self-assessment section where questions on one’s health and travel history in the past 30 days are asked for. In case some of the answers suggest Covid symptoms, the information will be sent to a government server. The data will then help the government take timely steps and initiate the isolation procedure, if necessary. The app also offers recommendations about social distancing, Covid-19 Do’s & Dont’s, safety measures and helpline numbers of each State. Overall, we found the ArogyaSetu app to be simple and straightforward to use. The user experience is also clean and self-explanatory.
Steps for registration
tamanna@newindianexpress.com @tamannamehdi