Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Jun 24, 2025

NHS app will use Bluetooth signals to warn people they could have coronavirus

The UK is preparing to anonymously track potential coronavirus carriers on their mobile phones as part of a contract tracing strategy.
Using Bluetooth signals, an upcoming NHS app will let people check if they have been in range of someone who has had symptoms. The idea is to prompt people to self-isolate earlier and prevent them from passing the bug on.

Speaking at today’s Downing Street press conference, deputy chief medical officer for England Jenny Harries told Metro.co.uk: ‘The ambition is to digitalise some of this process – to bring us back out of some of the social distancing restrictions.

‘Having a single model around track and trace is not going to be possible – it will require a certain proportion of us using those phones, it will require very rapid testing of the key individual and very strict compliance of all of those who are been “triggered” – who have been near someone who may have symptoms of coronavirus – to take appropriate action.

‘There’s quite a lot of work to keep going on that and we are likely to have some sort of hybrid response to manage the digital side and human nature. We are heading in the right direction and testing in that scenario is quite important.’

People experiencing coronavirus symptoms will be able to tell the NHSX app, which will then alert other users with whom they have had significant contact over the past few days.

If a user tests positive they will be given a code to enter into the app, triggering an alert for people they have been close to and prompting them to self-isolate.

The information could help identify hotspots and trends as a way of gaining a better understanding of the outbreak.

So far NHSX has only said the app will be released ‘in the coming weeks’ and that it is still in the development stage.

It is designed to collect data anonymously will not use any names of patients.

NHSX says users will be able to delete the app and all its associated data whenever they want and that data will only ever be used for NHS care, management, evaluation and research.

No one will be forced to install the app, although the NHS says large numbers of people need to take part for contract tracing to be effective.

NHSX has also said it will publish the key security and privacy designs of the app alongside its source code ‘so that privacy experts can “look under the bonnet”‘, and is working with Apple and Google on the system.

In May, the two companies say they will add the ability for iPhone and Android devices to exchange information with each other using Bluetooth via official health authority contact tracing apps around the world.

The tech giants have said that in the coming months, they then plan to build the technology directly into their operating systems so it can reach more people, including those using older phones and do away with the need to download a third-party app to log contact with others.

iOS and Android account for the vast majority of smartphones being used around the world.

The two companies have pledged to reinforce security too, saying ‘privacy, transparency and consent are of utmost importance in this effort’.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Airlines Evaluate Flight Cancellations Amid Escalating US-Iran Tensions
Starmer Invites Innovators to Join Government Talent Scheme
UK Economy’s Strong Opening Quarter Shows Signs of Cooling
Harrods Seeks Court Order to Secure Al Fayed Estate for Victims
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
We have new information and breaking details to share about what is shaping up to be a historic air campaign tonight
Six Massive Bombs Dropped on Fordow; Trump: 'A Historic Moment for the U.S., Israel, and the World'
Fordow: Deeply Buried Iranian Enrichment Site in U.S.–Israel Crosshairs
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Pakistan to nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize.
BBC Demands Perplexity AI Immediately Stop Using Its Content
Telegram Founder: I Will Leave My Fortune to Over 100 of My Children
Political Turmoil Resurfaces in Belgium Amid Economic Concerns
Fed policymakers divided on timing of interest rate cuts
Trump signals imminent agreement with Harvard University
Inheritance tax referendum alarms Swiss billionaire community
Japan cancels bilateral security meeting amid US defence demands
AI skeptic Emily Bender warns that ‘the emperor has no clothes’
Israel Confirms Assassination of Quds Force Commander in Tehran
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
Iranian Military Officers Reportedly Seek Contact with Reza Pahlavi, Signal Intent to Defect
FBI and Senate Investigate Allegations of Chinese Plot to Influence the 2020 Election in Biden’s Favor Using Fake U.S. Driver’s Licenses
Vietnam Emerges as Luxury Yacht Destination for Ultra‑Rich
Plans to Sell Dutch Embassy in Bangkok Face Local Opposition
China's Iranian Oil Imports Face Disruption Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions
Trump's $5 Million 'Trump Card' Visa Program Draws Nearly 70,000 Applicants
DGCA Finds No Major Safety Concerns in Air India's Boeing 787 Fleet
Airlines Reroute Flights Amid Expanding Middle East Conflict Zones
Elon Musk's xAI Seeks $9.3 Billion in Funding Amid AI Expansion
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Israeli Airstrike Targets Iranian State TV in Central Tehran
President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early and has ordered the National Security Council to the Situation Room
Taiwan Imposes Export Ban on Chips to Huawei and SMIC
Israel has just announced plans to strike Tehran again, and in response, Trump has urged people to evacuate
Netanyahu Signals Potential Regime Change in Iran
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
EU Proposes Ban on New Russian Gas Contracts
Analysts Warn Iran May Resort to Unconventional Warfare
Iranian Regime Faces Existential Threat Amid Conflict
Energy Infrastructure Becomes War Zone in Middle East
×