Could the rise of contact tracing and symptom tracking apps be giving corporations and strong-men politicians a new way of getting hold of people’s personal data? We uncovered one particularly troubling example. A thread https://gwitness.org/3fH1efL 

Our latest investigation found that ‘Alerta Guate’, an emergency alerts app for Guatemala also tracked users’ locations, even when the app is closed. The app, which has been endorsed by the President, may also be permitted to share that information with other parties. (2/5)

This is especially worrying in Guatemala, which has in recent years reportedly carried out large-scale cyber-surveillance against social leaders, businessmen, politicians, journalists amongst others. (3/5)

Our own research found that in 2018, 16 land and environmental defenders were killed in Guatemala – making it one of the riskiest places to be an environmental activist. (4/5)

The app was removed from iOS and Android app stores apparently after its potential security issues came to light.

As lockdowns are lifted & tracing apps are part of the new normal, govts must bring in safeguards against the misuse of similar apps released in the future (5/5)