ROME (NYTIMES) – When three people in the northern Italian region of Liguria tested positive for the coronavirus last week, they gave their doctors permission to punch into a national server anonymous codes generated by a new contact tracing application on their phones. Moments later, the phones of people who had also voluntarily downloaded the app and had come into contact with them buzzed with an alert.
Italy expanded that pilot programme on Monday (June 15), to join the first European countries using national contact tracing apps. France has also activated its own app, Germany’s is available for downloading as of Tuesday morning, and Britain is testing one, too.
The launch of the apps comes as more European countries loosened restrictions and opened borders to each other this week, hoping to revive their societies and economies without reigniting the contagion. But as they turn to unproven technology to avoid a second wave of infection, European nations are setting off widespread debate about how best to fight the virus while safeguarding privacy rights.
