Phones
with WA Notify enabled trade codes over Bluetooth, so if one user tests
positive for the virus the phone can alert any other users who may have
been near them in the infection window. (Shutterstock)
SEATTLE
— Since the evergreen state released its coronavirus exposure app, Wa
Notify, it has been downloaded and activated on nearly 1.4 million
phones across Washington. However, the more people have the app, the
more effective it is at alerting users who may have been exposed to the
virus.
That's where Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard steps in.
The
rock legend and Seattle-native has teamed up with the Washington State
Department of Health for a new PSA in which he explains how to activate
the app, and why he's installed it on his own phone.
According
to organizers, the more people who sign up for WA Notify, the better:
modeling of three counties showed that even a small percentage of people
using the app can still reduce the number of COVID-19 infections and
subsequent deaths.
At the time of the app's unveiling, Gov. Jay
Inslee described it as an important tool that could help contain the
spread of the virus.
"Secure,
private and anonymous exposure notification technology is an important
tool for Washington," Inslee said in a statement. "We've deployed WA
Notify in 29 languages so as many Washington residents as possible can
protect themselves, their loved ones and their communities. I encourage
everyone to start using WA Notify today so we can continue to work
together to contain the virus."
Once
activated, the app interfaces with other phones that also have it
installed, trading codes over Bluetooth that are randomized to maintain
anonymity. If one user later tests positive for the coronavirus, the
program then notifies every other user who was near the infected patient
during their exposure period.
The
program is voluntary and organizers have repeatedly stressed that it is
anonymous, and does not track a user's personal information or where
they have been going.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QG5W99tQNJ8
Comments
Since it's launch late last month, nearly 1.4 million Washingtonians have signed up for the state's coronavirus app, WA Notify.
By Charles Woodman, Patch Staff
Dec 15, 2020 10:32 am PT
SEATTLE — Since the evergreen state released its coronavirus exposure app, Wa Notify, it has been downloaded and activated on nearly 1.4 million phones across Washington. However, the more people have the app, the more effective it is at alerting users who may have been exposed to the virus.
That's where Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard steps in.
The rock legend and Seattle-native has teamed up with the Washington State Department of Health for a new PSA in which he explains how to activate the app, and why he's installed it on his own phone.
According to organizers, the more people who sign up for WA Notify, the better: modeling of three counties showed that even a small percentage of people using the app can still reduce the number of COVID-19 infections and subsequent deaths.
At the time of the app's unveiling, Gov. Jay Inslee described it as an important tool that could help contain the spread of the virus.
"Secure, private and anonymous exposure notification technology is an important tool for Washington," Inslee said in a statement. "We've deployed WA Notify in 29 languages so as many Washington residents as possible can protect themselves, their loved ones and their communities. I encourage everyone to start using WA Notify today so we can continue to work together to contain the virus."
In the following week, more than 1 million Washingtonians signed up to use the app.
Once activated, the app interfaces with other phones that also have it installed, trading codes over Bluetooth that are randomized to maintain anonymity. If one user later tests positive for the coronavirus, the program then notifies every other user who was near the infected patient during their exposure period.
The program is voluntary and organizers have repeatedly stressed that it is anonymous, and does not track a user's personal information or where they have been going.