Critics Point To Security Lapses In Arogya Setu App

Survey of India has made public a trove of maps related to the Arogya Setu App that helps in tracing COVID-19 patients. The officials associated with the project said that it would improve geospatial data as well as develop maps customized to different COVID-19 related applications like healthcare facilities, infection clusters and disaster management.

Advantage of Arogya Setu App

The maps released by Survey of India, the apex map making body of India, wouldn’t be directly useful for general public as they are aimed to help government agencies in getting geospatial information related to COVID-19 spread.

The app is developed with the aim to strengthen the public health delivery system of state and central governments by facilitating geospatial information related to health, socio-economic distress and livelihood challenges. The PM in his address to the nation on April 14 urged people to download the Arogya Setu App in their mobiles.

Users need to keep the Bluetooth and location history “on” as much as possible. The app will alert the users if they are in the vicinity of a COVID-19 patient. The app will also help in tracking those quarantined and helping in executing quarantine.

Critical reception of the application

According to critics, the Arogya Setu App and other apps related to it like Sahyog could compromise on the privacy of the users. They said that there was no clarity on how the data would be shared and used. The pointed that transferring data from Arogya Setu App to others could be a problem.

Source: https://bit.ly/3bnAM84

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