Contact tracing apps could be used to control the COVID-19 outbreak. Most of them work by automatically registering another smartphone when it is close by for a set period of time. If the user then tests positive for COVID-19 in the future, the contact tracing app notifies these contacts. Concerns have been raised about misuse of personal data. Initial data suggests there has been slow uptake of this new technology by users, and it's unclear if contact tracing apps have had or will affect the pandemic. Northern Ireland, Scotland, and now England and Wales have recently launched contact tracing apps.
Documents to download
-
Research for Parliament: Preparing for a changing world (4 MB, PDF)
-
Supporting documents
- Annex A: Contributors (102 KB, PDF) (102 KB, PDF)
- Annex B: References (647 KB, PDF) (647 KB, PDF)
These summaries are intended to help sketch out the implications of possible areas of change, which may or may not be desirable, to help inform policy priorities and debates and to identify priorities for POST’s future work programme.
Acknowledgements
POSTbriefs are based on literature reviews and are externally peer reviewed. POST would like to thank peer reviewers for kindly giving up their time during the preparation of this briefing, including:
Robert Joyce, Institute for Fiscal Studies
Office for National Statistics
Leo Ewbank, The King’s Fund
Professor Shane Johnson, Dawes Centre for Future Crime, UCL
Professor Jonathan Shepherd, Crime and Security Research Institute, Cardiff University
Professor Tony Dundon, Department of Work & Employment Studies, University of Limerick
Professor Nicholas Pleace, Centre for Housing Policy, University of York
Nerys Thomas, College of Policing
Dr Alex Wood, Oxford Internet Institute, Oxford University
Dr Jo Ingold, Leeds University Business School, Leeds University
Professor Louise Manning, Royal Agricultural University
Professor Jim Watson, UK Energy Research Centre & UCL
Dr Abigail McQuatters-Gollop, University of Plymouth
Antony Froggatt, Chatham House
Ross Harris, Cranfield Defence and Security, Cranfield University
Professor Mark Briers, Cranfield Defence and Security, Cranfield University
Professor Mark Richardson, Cranfield Defence and Security, Cranfield University
Professor Steve Schneider, Surrey Centre for Cyber Security, University of Surrey
Professor Jakub Bijak, Social Statistics and Demography, University of Southampton
Dr Martin Robson, Strategy and Security Institute, University of Exeter
Kate Cox, RAND
Dr Jessica Pykett, School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham
Dr Will Leggett, School of Social Policy, University of Birmingham
Dr Richard Whittle, Future Economies University Research Centre, Manchester Metropolitan University
Professor Achim Dobermann, Rothamsted
Professor Jules Pretty, University of Essex
Professor Ottoline Leyser, University of Cambridge
Professor Tamara Galloway, University of Exeter
Professor Roy Harrison, University of Birmingham
Dr Jo House, University of Bristol
Professor Dan Osborne, University College London
Documents to download
-
Research for Parliament: Preparing for a changing world (4 MB, PDF)
-
Supporting documents
- Annex A: Contributors (102 KB, PDF) (102 KB, PDF)
- Annex B: References (647 KB, PDF) (647 KB, PDF)
Related posts
-
-
This POSTnote describes edge computing, the use of computing resources in close proximity to the place where data are processed within a network, and some of the opportunities and challenges associated with its use. It supplements POSTnote 629.
-
A POSTnote on digital skills for life will discuss the digital skills required for everyday life and employment, why parts of the population may lack these skills and which groups are most affected. It will consider the impact of the skills shortage on individuals and the economy as well as strategies to improve the population’s digital skills. Provisional start date: January 2021.
