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COVID Alert app could result in some people being ID'd – CBC.ca

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4 years ago

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The federal government’s new COVID Alert app doesn’t offer 100 per cent privacy and could allow some who test positive for the coronavirus to be identified, particularly those who live in small communities or who don’t interact with many people.

When the government unveiled the app on Friday, it stressed that users’ privacy is protected because it “has no way of knowing your location, your name or address,” among other details.

Those who download the app and later test positive enter a special code to notify people who have been near them for at least 15 minutes sometime over the previous two weeks. The notification doesn’t identify who tested positive and maintains their privacy, the government said.

The government employees who developed it say, in a blog, that they wanted to describe the app’s handling of information as “anonymous.” 

But Privacy Commissioner Daniel Therrien’s office disagreed.

“Anonymous’ implies that there is no risk whatsoever that a person could be identified,” they wrote. “However, and although we all agreed that while there’s a very, very low risk that someone could be re-identified through the app, it isn’t necessarily zero.

Privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien warned that some third parties could try to compel employees or customers to give them access to information in the app. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)

“Someone living in a remote area and only interacting with one or two other people could theoretically be identified by their neighbours if they received exposure notification alerts, for example.”

Vito Pilieci, spokesman for Therrien, confirms that the privacy commissioner’s office had concerns about the claims the government wanted to make.

“True anonymity, technically speaking, would require the complete and permanent impossibility of reversing the data processes at play, which could reveal sources of personal information and so re-identify individuals,” he said.

“Our understanding of the situation is that while the identification of users would be highly improbable, it would not be impossible.”

The government changed its claims and Therrien endorsed the app.

In its more detailed privacy review released last week, Therrien’s office also warns that while use of the app is voluntary, some companies may try to force employees or clients to use it.

The report notes that some countries have made it against the law to force people to use a contact tracing or notification app.

The report says it is “another failing of our current laws” that this isn’t possible in Canada.

Canada hasn’t updated its privacy laws in decades.

Therrien’s office also warned that some “commercial entities” will be able to determine who has downloaded and used the app.

“These entities should not be permitted to monitor their customers’ use of the COVID Alert app.”

While the app has “exceptionally strong encryption and cryptographic hashing functions,” the system retains users’ IP addresses, which the privacy commissioner’s office said “may be shared with law enforcement to facilitate an investigation.”

The report also questions how Ottawa plans to make the app available to those who receive health care from the federal government such as First Nations people living on reserves, Inuit, serving members of the military, eligible veterans and some refugee claimants.

“The Government of Canada has not yet determined how to onboard these groups,” it wrote.

“Further, Health Canada has identified vulnerable populations including seniors, marginalized individuals, people without cell coverage, and First Nations, Inuit and Métis, who may benefit from targeted outreach strategies.”

On the whole, however, the questions about the app have to be weighed against its potential to fight COVID-19, said Therrien’s office.

“While exposure notification apps are new and untested, we believe that in context, the governments of Canada and Ontario have sufficiently demonstrated that COVID Alert is likely to be effective in reducing the spread of the virus, as part of a larger set of measures and subject to close monitoring for effectiveness once the app is in use.”

Elizabeth Thompson can be reached at elizabeth.thompson@cbc.ca

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How many Nova Scotians are on the doctor wait-list? Number hit 160,000 in June

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20 hours ago

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September 11, 2024

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HALIFAX – The Nova Scotia government says it could be months before it reveals how many people are on the wait-list for a family doctor.

The head of the province’s health authority told reporters Wednesday that the government won’t release updated data until the 160,000 people who were on the wait-list in June are contacted to verify whether they still need primary care.

Karen Oldfield said Nova Scotia Health is working on validating the primary care wait-list data before posting new numbers, and that work may take a matter of months. The most recent public wait-list figures are from June 1, when 160,234 people, or about 16 per cent of the population, were on it.

“It’s going to take time to make 160,000 calls,” Oldfield said. “We are not talking weeks, we are talking months.”

The interim CEO and president of Nova Scotia Health said people on the list are being asked where they live, whether they still need a family doctor, and to give an update on their health.

A spokesperson with the province’s Health Department says the government and its health authority are “working hard” to turn the wait-list registry into a useful tool, adding that the data will be shared once it is validated.

Nova Scotia’s NDP are calling on Premier Tim Houston to immediately release statistics on how many people are looking for a family doctor. On Tuesday, the NDP introduced a bill that would require the health minister to make the number public every month.

“It is unacceptable for the list to be more than three months out of date,” NDP Leader Claudia Chender said Tuesday.

Chender said releasing this data regularly is vital so Nova Scotians can track the government’s progress on its main 2021 campaign promise: fixing health care.

The number of people in need of a family doctor has more than doubled between the 2021 summer election campaign and June 2024. Since September 2021 about 300 doctors have been added to the provincial health system, the Health Department said.

“We’ll know if Tim Houston is keeping his 2021 election promise to fix health care when Nova Scotians are attached to primary care,” Chender said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Newfoundland and Labrador monitoring rise in whooping cough cases: medical officer

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2 days ago

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September 10, 2024

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ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Newfoundland and Labrador‘s chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.

Dr. Janice Fitzgerald says that so far this year, the province has recorded 230 confirmed cases of the vaccine-preventable respiratory tract infection, also known as pertussis.

Late last month, Quebec reported more than 11,000 cases during the same time period, while Ontario counted 470 cases, well above the five-year average of 98. In Quebec, the majority of patients are between the ages of 10 and 14.

Meanwhile, New Brunswick has declared a whooping cough outbreak across the province. A total of 141 cases were reported by last month, exceeding the five-year average of 34.

The disease can lead to severe complications among vulnerable populations including infants, who are at the highest risk of suffering from complications like pneumonia and seizures. Symptoms may start with a runny nose, mild fever and cough, then progress to severe coughing accompanied by a distinctive “whooping” sound during inhalation.

“The public, especially pregnant people and those in close contact with infants, are encouraged to be aware of symptoms related to pertussis and to ensure vaccinations are up to date,” Newfoundland and Labrador’s Health Department said in a statement.

Whooping cough can be treated with antibiotics, but vaccination is the most effective way to control the spread of the disease. As a result, the province has expanded immunization efforts this school year. While booster doses are already offered in Grade 9, the vaccine is now being offered to Grade 8 students as well.

Public health officials say whooping cough is a cyclical disease that increases every two to five or six years.

Meanwhile, New Brunswick’s acting chief medical officer of health expects the current case count to get worse before tapering off.

A rise in whooping cough cases has also been reported in the United States and elsewhere. The Pan American Health Organization issued an alert in July encouraging countries to ramp up their surveillance and vaccination coverage.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Bizarre Sunlight Loophole Melts Belly Fat Fast!

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September 10, 2024

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