FAQ: NHSX Contact Tracing App (Updated)

Each house on the Isle of Wight will be sent a letter with instructions of where to download it from

The App will be available on the Isle of Wight from Thursday 7th May 2020

Low-powered Bluetooth. Which phones you have been near to and how far away they have been from you will be gathered on your handset for a rolling 28 days. This is only shared with the NHS if you report yourself as ill and choose to share the data

NHSx say no, as its Bluetooth, it just looks at the other phones that have been near you, not record your location

No, it was stressed that Social Distancing and other Coronavirus measures will continue to be in place

Passing contact is not recorded, so just walking past someone in the street will not count. The Bluetooth data will look at how long you were close to another person for.

It isn’t compulsory, but NHSX say that the more people that use it, the better the results and more helpful it will be to minimise the impact of Covid-19

Initially Isle of Wight Council workers will bring it to you within 24 hours. They will return the next day to collect it, so it can be sent for testing

As it runs on Bluetooth, mobile reception isn’t needed to gather data. The only time reception is needed is if you self-report yourself as ill and choose to send your data

News OnTheWight was told that any number of people using it would be of benefit.
Above 20% – even at that level we will get very important insights.
Above 50% – there will be a material impact

When you are notified that someone who you have been near by had Covid-19, it won’t tell you who it was, when you were near them or where it was

If you delete the App, all the data held on your phone will be deleted. If you have chosen to shared data with the NHS, it can be retained by NHS for future research. Matthew Gould , CEO NHSX, told Human Right Committee said you cannot ask to have data your removed. At the end of the crisis, it will either be deleted, or fully anonymised for research

Matthew Gould (NHSX) said it won’t be used by law enforcement. The data would only be used for health or public health reasons.

CEO of NHSX, Matthew Gould, told the Human Rights Committee, that the guidance for the Isle of Wight is 16-years-old

NHSX said they will do what they can to minimise this. As a test will be sent out, if it isn’t completed or comes back negative, that reporting will be discounted

Not everyone on the Island needs to use a mobile. Those in strict lockdown self-isolation are unlikely to need to use it

No says NHSX. They will apply an algorithm to that will make the decision based on how far away they were and how long you were with them. This will be automatically be updated as they learn more.

NHSX tell News OnTheWight the code will be shared on the NHSX GitHub

Yes, that’s the way they told us it would work. If a test comes back negative, those who were originally alerted, are sent the equivalent of a ‘don’t worry’ message to their phones.

This came up in the evidence session of the Human Rights Committee. Matthew Gould (CEO NHSX) gave his answer at around 15:15 here

Our summary understanding at this time: When each App is installed, it is issued its own (they say anonymous) installation ID. This is known by the central server, so when an infection is detected, those handsets that have been deemed to have had ‘high risk proximity events’ with the infected handset are alerted using the installation ID.

For a more in depth understanding, this article has a lot of detail in it.