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Michigan’s attorney general and 37 others ask Apple and Google to guarantee contact tracing apps protect personal info

App screen shot
Posted at 10:50 AM, Jun 19, 2020
and last updated 2020-06-19 10:50:39-04

LANSING, Mich. — A coalition that includes Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, sent a letter to management at Apple and Google asking the companies to guarantee that consumers’ personal information is protected when using any apps for contact tracing or notification of exposure to coronavirus.

Read the letter

Contact tracing is used to track persons who may have come into close contact with a personal confirmed with coronavirus. There has also been talk of developing apps that detect COVID-19 patients.

"Technology can provide valuable resources like digital contact tracing and enhance our understanding of this deadly virus, but that tool must be wielded appropriately so it does not infringe upon the privacy of our residents,” Nessel said in a release.

The letter also requests that the apps are connected to a public health authority and are removed from app stores when they are no longer needed.

The letter was signed by 38 attorneys general, including Nessel.