CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services is developing an app that will aim to notify users when they may have been exposed to someone who tested positive for COVID-19.
The app, called SlowCOVIDNC, will leverage Google and Apple's notification systems to alert users with the app if they were in close contact with another user who later tested positive for COVID-19. SlowCOVIDNC is a voluntary app and will be free of charge.
“The SlowCOVIDNC app builds on our ongoing efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19 across the state," Sam Gibbs, NCDHHS Deputy Secretary of Technology and Operations, said in a statement. "By proactively notifying app users of potential exposure to the virus, people can act quickly to protect themselves, their loved ones and their communities."
The app is completely anonymous, and NCDHHS says it will not collect, store, or share personal information or location data for users.
In order for it to work, users must enable Bluetooth and exposure notifications. The app then will generate an anonymous token for the device that will change every 10 to 20 minutes, never linking to identities or locations to protect privacy.
Phones with the app and Bluetooth working will be exchanging the anonymous tokens every few minutes, and NCDHHS says the app will take note of how long tokens are near each other. It will also rely on signal strength to determine approximate distance.
That way, if an app user tests positive for COVID-19, they can submit a unique PIN in the app that will then anonymously notify others with the app who may have been in close contact with them in the last 14 days.
The app is currently in Beta testing. An exact date for the app release has not yet been set, but NCDHHS said the goal is by the end of the month. Click here for more information on the app's development.
