Society

Japan plans to introduce contact-tracing app

May 10 (NHK) - The Japanese government plans to make a coronavirus contact-tracing app available by the end of this month.

The app records the data of smartphones that come within a certain distance of each other. People will then be alerted if they have been in close contact with someone diagnosed with the virus.

The government held a meeting on Friday to discuss ways to use information technology for preventing the spread of the virus.

It was decided the app should not keep track of phone numbers and location data, to protect people's privacy.

Economic Revitalization Minister Nishimura Yasutoshi says the operating systems of smartphone models are being updated to run the app. He says he hopes it will be put into practical use by the end of the month.

Source: ANNnewsCH

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