A week after a lockdown was imposed on March 25 to stop the spread of the highly-contagious coronavirus, the government launched a contact tracing app Aarogya Setu, designed to keep track of all app users and alert if a person came in contact with a Covid 19 patient.

Within 40 days of its launch, the app had recorded more than 90 million downloads. The app was developed by the National Informatics Centre under the ministry of electronics & information technology

How does Aarogya Setu work?

The application uses the phone’s Bluetooth and GPS functions to keep a record of all Aarogya Setu users. It also keeps a GPS log of all the places that the device had been.

These records are stored on the phone till the time any user tests positive or declares symptoms of covid 19 in a self-assessment survey in the app. It tries to determine the risk if one has been near (within six feet of) a covid 19 patient, by scanning through a database of known cases across India.

Is it mandatory to download the app?

In an order on April 29, 2020 the central government made it mandatory for all employees to download the app. “Before starting for office, they must review their status on Aarogya Setu and commute only when the app shows safe or low risk”, a statement said. The Union Home ministry also said that the application is mandatory for all living in the covid 19 containment zone.

Stranded Indians abroad and those traveling on special trains from one state to another also needed to install it on their mobile phones before embarking on the journey.

What are the other uses of the app?

It helps identify emerging hotspots Niti Ayog CEO Amitabh Kant said: “The Aarogya Setu App alerted the government about more than 650 hotspots across the country and over 300 emerging hotspots which could have been missed otherwise. It gives accurate forecast of hotspots and it is also preventing the origin of newer hotspots.”

What are the concerns about the app?

Critics said that Arogya Setu , and applications like Sahyog that link to it, could breach individuals’ privacy as there was no clarity on how data would be shared between the two applications.

There are no detailed guidelines on how the online privacy of the users will be protected. Therefore, Aarogya Setu users have little choice but to accept the privacy policy provided by the government, critics say.

Who has access to the data stored in the app?

There is no clarity on this. As per the policy, “persons carrying out medical and administrative interventions necessary in relation to covid 19” will have access to the data.

But, experts argue that there should be more transparency on the guidelines governing the working of the app that is being promoted by the government and which collects personal details of millions.