Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Desire To Track And Stop Pandemic Could Open Door For Surveillance That May Stick Around After Crisis
The New York Times: As Coronavirus Surveillance Escalates, Personal Privacy Plummets
In South Korea, government agencies are harnessing surveillance-camera footage, smartphone location data and credit card purchase records to help trace the recent movements of coronavirus patients and establish virus transmission chains. In Lombardy, Italy, the authorities are analyzing location data transmitted by citizens’ mobile phones to determine how many people are obeying a government lockdown order and the typical distances they move every day. About 40 percent are moving around “too much,” an official recently said. (Singer and Sang-Hun, 3/23)
The Associated Press: Europe Eyes Smartphone Location Data To Stem Virus Spread
Several European nations are evaluating powerful but potentially intrusive tools for fighting the coronavirus pandemic, a move that could put public health at odds with individual privacy. The tools in question are apps that would use real-time phone-location data to track the movements of virus carriers and the people they come in contact with. The aim would be to develop a better sense of where infections are flaring up, how they are spreading and when health authorities need to order quarantines and related measures to limit the spread of COVID-19. (Bajak and Winfiled, 3/24)
Reuters: Exclusive: Elite Hackers Target WHO As Coronavirus Cyberattacks Spike
Elite hackers tried to break into the World Health Organization earlier this month, sources told Reuters, part of what a senior agency official said was a more than two-fold increase in cyberattacks. (Satter, Stubbs and Bing, 3/23)
ABC News: Rural Communities' Digital Deserts Cripple Tele-Education During Coronavirus Outbreak
As the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread across the country, businesses, schools and groups are heading online to stay productive. Rural communities with poor to little broadband Internet access, however, are stuck in digital deserts with no way to ride out the situation, according to digital accessibility activists. (Pereira, 3/24)
