Both companies said privacy
and preventing governments from using the system to compile data on citizens
was a primary goal.
Apple Inc and Alphabet Inc's Google on Monday said they would ban the use of location tracking in apps that use a new contact tracing system the two are building to help slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Apple and Google,
whose operating systems power 99% of smart phones, said last month they would
work together to create a system for notifying people who have been near others
who have tested positive for Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.
The companies plan to allow only public health authorities to use the
technology.
Both companies said privacy
and preventing governments from using the system to compile data on citizens
was a primary goal. The system uses Bluetooth signals from phones to detect
encounters and does not use or store GPS location data.
But the developers of
official coronavirus-related apps in several US states told Reuters last month
it was vital they be allowed to use GPS location data in conjunction with the
new contact tracing system to track how outbreaks move and identify hotspots.
The Apple-Google decision
to not allow GPS data collection with their contact tracing system will require
public health authorities that want to access GPS location to rely on what
Apple and Google have described as unstable, battery-draining workarounds.
Alternatives likely would
miss some encounters because iPhones and Android devices turn off Bluetooth
connections after some time for battery-saving and other reasons unless users
remember to re-activate them.
But some apps said they
planned to stick to their own approaches.
