Welcome to the real app society - as govts seek to track spread of #COVIDー19, they're turning to apps like the one just made mandatory in Poland

There's lots to unpack here: Why are they doing this? Will it help? What data is collected? Who's in charge?

<<cue thread>> https://twitter.com/markscott82/status/1245751108951314432

First, the basics. Almost everyone (who can be) worldwide is on lockdown. Social distancing is key, experts say. But how do you keep tabs on that to make sure ppl comply? Why, how about your smartphone? Almost everyone has one, it gives of reams of location data. Simples. right?

Well, initially, govts turned to aggregated anonymized mobile phone data. Telcos already provide it (for commercial customers), it offers nationwide reach. And, most importantly, it keeps people’s actual locations off limits to govt agencies. It’s aggregated, it’s anonymized

But that plan soon ran into a major problem. As soon as people started staying in their homes, aggregated, nationwide mobile data was less helpful. Why? Because it doesn’t offer the granularity (say, at a neighborhood level) that GPS data from your smartphone would allow.

So what happened next? Govts took a page of Big Tech’s playbook & started to create location-tracking apps. This began in Asia, where China, South Korea & Taiwan all successfully tracked ppl’s locations.

I’m just going to leave aside the idea that after years of telling Big Tech to stop with invasive data-collection practices, Western govts are now doing the same — albeit in the name of public health. That’s something to unpack at a later date.

So what do these apps do? In Poland (where 90k+ have now downloaded the app), the govt pings you a text message, saying you’ve got 20 min to upload a selfie to a national database that tracks your location. If you don’t, you’ll get a call/visit from the police

Other countries are taking different approaches. Some want to use bluetooth signals to cross-reference ppl’s locations to see who you’ve been in contact w/ in recent weeks that may have tested positive

Others, like a voluntary app in the UK, are relying on crowdsourcing ppl’s symptoms to figure out how to tackle the global pandemic. The US govt (while not an app) is relying on mobile advertising data from existing apps (so is Mexico, I’m told)

Tech giants are also getting in on the action. This morning, @Google released aggregated mobile data from its users. It shows how ppl’s movements have gone up/down in certain areas like parks, grocery stores & shops over a given period https://bit.ly/3bKroLG 

In short: mass govt surveillance (for legitimate public health reasons) is either here or is coming to an App Store near you. Coming back to Poland (only Western country to make this mandatory), the govt will hold onto that data for up to 6 years.

Should add: it’s mandatory for those possibly infected. Other countries are making it voluntary, though I don’t see how that will last if officials really want to clamp down on ppl’s movements.

Talking to ppl across EU & US who want to use (or are already using) this smartphone location data, there’s a genuine sense that privacy needs to be protected & that it can really help w/ contact tracing & modeling the disease’s spread

There’s also a push, in some countries, to take the control of this data out of political hands and give it to an apolitical actor that can decide when this data collection should be turned off

But I remain skeptical. Why? 'Cos tracking ppl is very handy (just ask Google of Facebook) for a whole bunch of reasons — and not just to keep people safe from a disease that, most likely, will return in waves over the coming years

What I find interesting is that here in Europe, home to the world’s most robust privacy standards, officials have been quick to roll them back in the name of public health (though most would say, legitimately, that such moves are allowed under GDPR)

Most have said that using aggregated mobile data is fine b/c, well, it’s anonymized and is already done for commercial reasons. Spanner in works: the Dutch watchdog said this week that such data-collection was not lawful w/o new legislation, so, yeah… (HT: @vmanancourt)

Others have gone further, green lighting the use of these smartphone apps, with caveats that ppl can remove consent when they like, that data will eventually have to be deleted and other provisions aimed at protecting people’s rights

But, again, I remain skeptical. If, say, the coronavirus pandemic goes on for years, who’s going to stop govts from maintaining these apps in the name of “protecting people’s health?” Who gets to make that decision? How will ppl’s data not be shared widely within govts?

And that takes me back to Poland. A few ppl I spoke to had refused to download app for privacy concerns. But most had just shrugged and said they were already handing over data to other apps, so would another app really make a difference? Apathy, it turns out, trumps privacy.

But, to that, I say this. Poland created its app in 3 days (based off an existing white-labeled digital service). It was not tested, really, for security breaches or privacy holes. It hands over reams of ppl’s personal movements to a number of govt agencies. It’s buggy as hell.

Sure, it’s just another app. Sure, you hand over data to others. Sure, we’re in a public health crisis. But if others likely follow Poland’s lead, and ppl elsewhere just shrug their shoulders & download the app w/o thinking, we could likely sleepwalk into mass govt surveillance

Surveillance, I should add, that may be indefinite, has limited checks on its power and could be left in the hands of politically-motivated actors who, although doing what they can to keep people safe, are not averse to using such situations to their own advantage

Not to get too historical, but the concept of “income tax” was supposed to be a temporary measures, and you and I are still paying it. Yeah, that’s probably a clumsy metaphor, but who says these apps will be turned off/deleted once the current crisis is over?

Rant over. Thoughts appreciated.