“We think it’s going to be a very important part of that strategy.” The Oxford team developed an algorithm for the app. “Traditional contact tracing is too slow for this virus and it won’t work,” said Bonsall. The app would not need to access location data, but could log users’ proximity to each other through Bluetooth. Once a user reports symptoms or a positive test result, the app would trace back through close contacts over the past seven days and alert those calculated to be at risk. However, it is possible the app would be rolled out later in the year before current restrictions are lifted.

Source: The Guardian March 31, 2020 17:15 UTC