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A28 WORLD NEWS
Wednesday 25 March 2020
Europe eyes smartphone location data to stem virus spread

By FRANK BAJAK and NI- are not sharing people's
COLE WINFIELD location data with govern-
Associated Press ments.
The Czech Republic has A Google spokesperson
become the first European said the company was
country to announce plans exploring ways to use ag-
to deploy a powerful but gregated location infor-
potentially intrusive loca- mation against COVID-19,
tion-tracking tool for fight- but added that the loca-
ing the coronavirus pan- tion data Google normally
demic, as others consider gathers from phone users
similar moves bound to put isn't accurate enough for
public health in conflict contact tracing.
with individual privacy. An AT&T spokesperson
The effort announced Tues- said the company was not
day by the head of a Czech sharing real-time location
government crisis team tracking with U.S. govern-
will use real-time phone- ment virus-trackers. Sprint
location data to track the declined to comment and
movements of virus carriers Verizon did not immediate-
and people they come in ly respond to a query.
contact with. The aim is to Israel's effort and the newly
pinpoint where infections In this March 10, 2020 file photo, a woman wearing a face mask checks her phone as she walks announced Czech initia-
are flaring up, how they at the Naviglio Grande canal in Milan, Italy. Associated Press tive go well beyond what
are spreading and when Europe's governments are
health authorities need to have intersected in the cation data to track the veillance. A spokesperson currently getting from wire-
order quarantines and oth- previous five days would movements of virus carriers for the White House Office less carriers to identify "hot
er containment measures be individual contacted by for the prior two weeks, us- of Science and Technol- spots" of disease and hu-
to limit the spread of CO- phone so that they can get ing historical data to iden- ogy Policy said it was not man concentration. While
VID-19. Britain, Germany tested. Officials said they tify possible transmission. currently working on such legal safeguards exist in
and Italy are among coun- expect to launch in mid- Epidemiologists call this an app. The Centers for Dis- most democracies to pro-
tries similarly considering April. The new tool marks a process "contact tracing," ease Control and Preven- tect digital privacy, the
enlisting individual location substantial departure from which has traditionally re- tion did not immediately danger of the coronavirus
data in the fight against existing European disease- lied on infected people's respond to questions from could quickly compel poli-
the virus. That worries pri- surveillance efforts, which memories to identify indi- The Associated Press. cymakers to override them.
vacy advocates, who fear have focused on tracking viduals with whom they The White House has On Friday, the European
such ubiquitous surveil- people's movements with came into contact. reached out to Big Tech Union's Data Protection Au-
lance could be abused aggregated phone loca- So far, there's no indica- companies for help in the thority cautiously endorsed
in the absence of careful tion data designed not to tion the U.S. government worst pandemic in a cen- putting privacy on pause
oversight, with potentially identify individuals. Italian plans to track identifiable tury, but Google and Face- during the public health
dire consequences for civil police also began mobiliz- individuals for disease sur- book both told the AP they emergency.q
liberties. "These are testing ing drones on Monday to
times, but they do not call enforce restrictions on citi- Bangladesh says it will release jailed
for untested new technolo- zens' movements.
British activists said in an gument in favor of more former prime minister
gies," a group of mostly But there is a powerful ar-

open letter Monday to the powerful digital tools, even
country's National Health if they shred privacy: They By JULHAS ALAM
Service. The letter noted have been used by several Associated Press
that such measures could of the Asian governments DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP)
put human rights at risk and most successful at contain- — Bangladesh's govern-
may not work. ing the pandemic, includ- ment will release impris-
Czech officials said Tues- ing in China, Taiwan, Hong oned former Prime Minister
day that they will use data Kong, South Korea and Sin- Khaleda Zia for six months
from wireless carriers for a gapore. on the condition that she
voluntary app in which the Last week, Israel took the stays at home and does
movements of people who most extreme step yet by not leave the country, the
test positive for the virus will charging its Shin Bet do- law minister said Tuesday.
be mapped out and the mestic security agency Anisul Huq said Zia, 74,
people with whom they with using smartphone lo- is being released on hu-
manitarian grounds con-
sidering her age.
Zia, the country's oppo- In this Dec. 28, 2017, file photo, Bangladesh's former prime
sition leader, was sen- minister and Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chairperson
Khaleda Zia, center, leaves after a court appearance in
tenced to 17 years in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
prison in two corruption Associated Press
cases. Her Bangladesh
Nationalist Party says the nies the allegation. currently being treated
cases were politically mo- Zia's party says she is seri- in a prison cell at Bang-
tivated. The government ously ill with ailments in- abandhu Sheikh Mujib
of Prime Minister Sheikh cluding respiratory prob- Medical University in Dha-
Hasina, Zia's archrival, de- lems and arthritis. She is ka. q