Bluezone COVID-19 tracking app exceeds 30 million downloads
Bluezone is a Bluetooth-based app that helps determine whether or not a person has come into contact with a COVID-19 patient.
As of 11:30 am, March 2, the Bluezone app recorded over 30 million downloads, according to statistics released by the Department of Computerization under the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC).
The number of people downloading and using Bluezone, smartphone application for tracing those at risk of COVID-19 infection, has increased dramatically in the last three weeks, since the third COVID-19 outbreak in Vietnam on January 28.
Da Nang, Hai Duong, Hanoi, Quang Ninh, and Ho Chi Minh City are the top five provinces and cities in the country in terms of Bluezone users, the Department of Computerization said.
It added that more than 30 million Bluezone users can make medical declarations online right on the application.
Besides, Bluezone also added features such as sending feedback, through which people can report to authorities about cases at high risk of COVID-19 infection, calendar and among others.
In the time ahead, Bluezone will improve the function of monitoring vaccination.
Since determining Bluezone as instrumental in tracing people’s interaction history, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has called on people in Vietnam to install the application.
The contract tracing app, developed by tech firm Bkav, uses Bluetooth Low Energy, a wireless personal area network technology, for smartphones to communicate in close range of up to two meters.
If a user is positive for coronavirus (known as person F0), health authorities can identify those who are exposed that person (known as F1), and the system will alert them about the risk of infection.
They will be also provided with instructions on contacting health authorities for assistance.
The app is completely confidential, keeping anonymity of users, and transparent, as it only stores data on the user’s phone and does not transfer user’s information or reveal their locations to the system.
Bluezone's effectiveness was proven when it helped the medical agencies track thousands of people who had close contact with an infected person or a suspected case.
Thereby, the larger the community of Bluezone users is, the lighter the workload of the front liners in the anti-pandemic battle, said health authorities.