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A12 TECHNOLOGY
Monday 7 deceMber 2020
Despite promise, few in U.S. adopting COVID-19 exposure apps

By BRYAN ANDERSON and cerns and technical issues.
MATT O'BRIEN Security experts praise the
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Six Apple-Google system for
months ago, Apple and protecting users' anonym-
Google introduced a new ity, but it's been a tough sell
smartphone tool designed for many people. Ameri-
to notify people who might can users say partisanship,
have been exposed to privacy concerns and stig-
the coronavirus, without ma surrounding COVID-19
disclosing any personal in- have kept participation
formation. But for the most low. A lack of state and
part, Americans haven't federal efforts to boost
been all that interested. awareness hasn't helped.
Fewer than half of U.S. Neither have technological
states and territories — 18 and bureaucratic issues.
in total — have made such Lee McFarland, a loan of-
technology widely avail- ficer from Grand Forks,
able. And according to a North Dakota, was eager
data analysis by The Asso- to download his state's
ciated Press, the vast ma- Care19 Alert app but said
jority of Americans in such he couldn't push a "Notify
locations haven't activat- Others" button after getting
ed the tool. the virus in late October.
Data from 16 states, Guam "If you test positive, a pub-
and the District of Colum- lic health official will call
bia shows that 8.1 million and verify your code," said
people had utilized the a message on McFarland's
technology as of late No- app. "This ensures that only
vember. That's about one verified positive COVID-19
in 14 of the 110 million resi- North Carolina' s cell phone app contact tracing SlowCOVIDNC is shown on Friday, Dec. 4, 2020, people can send notifica-
dents in those regions. in Charlotte, N.C. tions."
In theory, such apps could Associated Press McFarland said he forgot
bolster one of the most diffi- to tell the health worker he
cult tasks in pandemic con- little fanfare. Of roughly only about a fifth of all resi- to the apps and instructions had the app installed on his
trol: Tracing the contacts of 10.5 million state residents, dents have opted into this for iPhone notification acti- phone. He was unsuccess-
people infected with the only 482,003 had installed it tracking. On Friday, Wash- vation are typically avail- ful in following up with the
coronavirus in order to test through the end of Novem- ington said that more than able on state health-de- worker to get the needed
and isolate them if neces- ber. 1 million state residents — partment websites. code, and has since delet-
sary. In practice, however, "It won't work great until ev- roughly 13% of its popula- Irish app developer Near- ed the app.
widespread COVID-19 mis- eryone's using it, but it's bet- tion — had activated the Form says more than one- Even when that process
information, the complexity ter than nothing," Metaxa- technology in its first four quarter of Ireland's popu- works, however, many
of the technology, over- tos said. days. lation uses its COVID-19 North Dakotans don't actu-
whelmed health workers Apple and Google co- Virginia's COVIDWISE app app. It's been harder to get ally push the button to no-
needed to quickly confirm created the primary tech- launched on Aug. 5 and such traction in the four U.S. tify others.
a diagnosis, and a general nology behind such apps, was the first to go live. states where it's built simi- Tim Brookins, CEO of app
lack of awareness have all which use Bluetooth wire- Since then, fewer than one lar apps: New York, New developer ProudCrowd,
presented obstacles, ex- less signals to anonymously in ten residents have down- Jersey, Pennsylvania and said 91 of North Dakota's
perts and users say. detect when two phones loaded it, though the state Delaware. 14,000 active users had
"There's a lot of things work- have spent time in close estimates almost 20% of Vir- In Ireland, "all sides of the their "Notify Others" button
ing against it," said Jessica proximity. If an app user ginians between the ages political divide came to- enabled after the state
Vitak, an associate profes- tests positive for the virus, of 18 and 65 with a smart- gether with a consistent confirmed them as posi-
sor at the University of Mary- that person's phone can phone have done so. Dela- message on this is what tive. Of the 91 users, only 29
land's College of Informa- trigger a notification to ware's app downloads ac- we need to do," said Larry pushed the button, which
tion Studies. "Unfortunately, other people they've spent count for about 7% of the Breen, NearForm's chief prompted 50 notifications.
in the U.S., COVID has been time near — without reveal- state's population. commercial officer. "That Still, many users say they'll
politicized far more than in ing names, locations, or All other U.S. states ana- debate continues to rage keep the app in hopes oth-
any other country. I think any other identifying infor- lyzed have much lower on your side of the pond." ers will see its potential ben-
that's affecting people's mation. adoption rates. Elsewhere in Europe, the efits.
willingness to use tools to In states such as Colorado, New York launched its uptake has been mixed. "You can say that about
track it." Connecticut, Maryland app on Oct. 1. It recently Germany and Britain have just about anything that
Charlotte, North Carolina, and Washington, as well as surpassed 1 million down- penetration rates similar not enough people are
lawyer Evan Metaxatos Washington, D.C., iPhone loads, which amounts to to Ireland's; in Finland the doing this or that, but ev-
was thrilled to learn in No- users don't even have to about 5% of the popula- figure is 45%, according to erybody that does some-
vember about his state's download an app. In fact, tion. New Jersey and Penn- data compiled by MIT Tech- thing is helping," said David
tracking app, called Slow- Apple prompts users via sylvania have seen less use, nology Review. In France, Waechter, a general con-
COVIDNC. He immediately pop-ups to activate the with a 4% download rate. however, less than 4% of tractor from Lenoir, North
downloaded it and got his notification system by ad- Adoption is even lower in the population is using the Carolina. "I think that the
parents and pregnant wife justing their phone settings. Wyoming, North Dakota, official COVID app, which United States could use a
to follow suit. In these states, adoption Michigan, Nevada and shuns the Apple-Google good strong dose of E pluri-
But they're still outliers in rates are notably higher. Alabama, with users rep- approach for a more intru- bus unum and stop thinking
the state, which launched But even in the most suc- resenting only 1% to 3% of sive data collection system about self and start thinking
the app in September with cessful state, Connecticut, their state populations. Links that raised privacy con- about our countrymen."q