Is this contact tracing?

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         So, the other day, I received a notification on my phone.

         Yes, I do use iOS and this came as no surprise to me. It looks like Apple is stepping in with the contact tracing game. It's even compatible with Android users!

         Of course, I was hesitant to put it on. It's not so much about the infringement of privacy. If that's what you are on about, I have bad news for you. You most likely shouldn't have a phone to begin with. This function is definitely not the first thing that's ever tracked anyone these days.

         Some of my coworkers have already enabled this notification. You know, some have children that go to school and social functions that they need to attend. Shocking, I know. Here some of you guys thinking everyone has been living in lock down. That's not even close to the case. I'm curious what this means to medical personnel since we are near high risk individuals all the time. It would not surprise me if it blows up all the time if all the patients turn this on.

         To me, I'm not too bothered with it. It might be useful down the road when a real terrible plague actually hit us. For now, there's no need for me to go for extreme caution. That seems to fuel paranoia and fear and I'm not about to live like that. I treat Covid like a bad case of the flu.

         For those of you who don't know, I came from an East Asian background (yes, I'm American). It's not uncommon to wear masks during the flu season. Personal bubble is very much a thing, even more so compared to the general culture here. So yes, I already keep a distance (not always 6 feet) when I'm socializing. The only people that should be inside that space are family members anyways, but I digress.

         Point being, expect more government overreach at some point.

Posted with STEMGeeks



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In the light of modern cryptography these sorts of utilities could certainly be effectively deployed without compromising privacy, but as you mentioned in a lot of ways that ship has already sailed with practically any phone as is. Although I think it's less than futile to attempt to maintain some semblance of privacy, but that's just me.

"I treat Covid like a bad case of the flu."

Seems fair to me. At least you're not saying it's a hoax or using it as an excuse to scapegoat the Chinese.

I really have been living in lock down and you seem to have actually been out there on the front lines so to speak so you'd probably know better than me, but I don't hear as much about long lasting sequelae from influenza as from diseases like Covid (SARS, MERS, etc).

Oh and government's mere existence seems like overreach to me, so I'm right there with you on those expectations.

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Yeah, it's definitely not a hoax, but it's also not the apocalypse either.

Well, I guess my perspective is limited as I am an essential worker, so I move about a lot. As far as I know, my state only encourages precautions and vaccinations. We are open for the most part.

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(Edited)

Most places are, and last I checked the numbers are actually looking heartening for once.

I'm just extra cautious because I have a plethora of medical conditions and missing organs. I haven't set foot in a store in at least 8 months, or even met in person with my friends or family.

Although I do think we could be much farther along if last year we had someone acting in good faith at the helm of our republic.

That's just wishful thinking though.

Take care out there.

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the conspiracy nuts will have a field day with these :D (don't get me wrong it's not something that I like seeing either but I don't go full tin foil hat over it )

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Haha. They generally don't bother me.

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(Edited)

when I interact with people in real life that still think the pandemic is a hoax ... they like drain my patience for a week

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Fortunately for me, most people I know share sentiments similar to me on the matter.

I guess I don't tend to befriend extremists of either spectrum.

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sometimes you can't avoid them unfortunately

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In India they released an app as soon as the lockdown started ( maybe in April 2020 ) called ArogyaSetu app which did exactly this . We could see if there were any COVID positive person nearby through the app but the downside was as you mentioned breach of privacy + people didn't know they have to turn on their bluetooth to make it work lol.

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people didn't know they have to turn on their bluetooth to make it work lol.

Ha, that defeats the purpose of it rather quickly.

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Exactly . Just like wearing the mask like this -

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What's the point in it ? I see many people telling , Oh I have Arogya Setu app I am safe but do you even know how to use it?

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