After a long while, France will begin testing its StopCOVID-19 tracking app very soon according to a statement from Reuters. The French country’s Digital Affairs Minister Cedric O has stated via Reuters that France’s StopCOVID will be available for real-world testing by 11th May.
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This comes as the country begins talk on how to start easing up the coronavirus pandemic lockdown measures. Although Mr. Cedric O did not state when exactly the app will be available for everyone to use, that will depend on the success of the testing of the application.
Also, note that France isn’t budging on its intention to loosen Apple’s Bluetooth restrictions for the sake of the app. While Cedric O acknowledged that both France’s centralized approach which stores identifiers for positive contacts in one place had Apple’s decentralized method had flaws, he insisted that the method supported by iOS was crippling.
It reportedly had inferior data security and gave up control, which makes it difficult for a health authority to learn from its info without reaching out to tech companies.
Cedric O was also aware that trusting a central organization created the potential for abuse, but saw French control of health policy as a “sovereign prerogative” that shouldn’t be handed over to private tech companies.
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He clearly stated that France would forge ahead whether or not Apple changed its mind to comply with the necessary guidelines. Although the iPhone version is “satisfactory,” he said.
The French government is hoping that Apple may have a change of decision by the time StopCovid is widely circulated.
However, there was no clear detail on how exactly the StopCovid tracking app will work.
