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Germany’s coronavirus tracing app alerts first users

More than 12 million people have downloaded Germany's new Corona-Warn-App so far. And for the first time since it launched last week, it has alerted users at risk of having coronavirus.

Published: 25 June 2020 09:18 CEST
Germany's coronavirus tracing app alerts first users
The Corona-Warn-App (corona warning app). Photo: DPA

An estimated 20-30 users have so far registered on the app that they've contracted coronavirus, Spiegel reported on Thursday.

And on Tuesday night, those who had been in contact with these people over a certain period of time will have received a corresponding warning message from the app.

App users who have received this notification can get in touch with their local health authorities and be tested for coronavirus free of charge.

However, it's not mandatory – authorities have no way of knowing who's been alerted. That's because the information is not collected centrally, but instead on users' smartphones to protect privacy.

The data is encrypted and automatically deleted after two weeks.

The app was launched on June 16th, with authorities calling it a “big step” in the battle to control the spread of Covid-19.

READ ALSO:

To calculate the risk of a person getting the virus, the app takes into account how long the contact with infected persons was, how much distance there was between them, and when exactly the infected persons tested positive.

The app can only display the estimated risk of infection, so anyone who gets a warning message is advised to get tested.

Now for the science part…

The app uses bluetooth to monitor which other smartphones using the app are in the vicinity and for how long. 

If you come into contact with someone for around 15 minutes or more who also has the app, has tested positive for Covid-19 and submitted this information into the app, you'll receive the warning message.

No details, such as who tested positive or the location of where the person was, are disclosed.

Germany's app in the spotlight in UK

It came as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was confronted over his claim that no country has a working contact-tracing app with news about Germany.

Labour leader Keir Starmer told Johnson that Germany's app launched last week and had 12 million downloads.

“Other countries are ahead of us. When are we going to have a working app?” Starmer said.
 
Media in Germany, including Welt, ran stories about the House of Commons clip.

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HEALTH

Could there be a new wave of Covid-19 in Germany this autumn?

It’s back again: amid sinking temperatures, the incidence of Covid-19 has been slowly rising in Germany. But is this enough to merit worrying about the virus?

Published: 20 September 2023 12:05 CEST
Updated: 20 September 2023 22:22 CEST
Could there be a new wave of Covid-19 in Germany this autumn?

More people donning face masks in supermarkets, friends cancelling plans last minute due to getting sick with Covid-19. We might have seen some of those familiar reminders recently that the coronavirus is still around, but could there really be a resurgence of the virus like we experienced during the pandemic years?

According to virologists, the answer seems to be ‘maybe’: since July, the number of people newly infected with Covid-19 has been slowly rising from a very low level.

According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), nine people per 100,000 inhabitants became newly infected in Germany last week. A year ago, there were only around 270 reported cases.

Various Corona variants are currently on the loose in the country. According to the RKI,  the EG.5 (also called Eris) and XBB.1.16 lines were each detected in the week ending September 3rd with a share of just under 23 percent. 

The highly mutated variant BA.2.86 (Pirola), which is currently under observation by the World Health Organisation (WHO), also arrived in the country this week, according to RKI. 

High number of unreported case

The RKI epidemiologists also warned about a high number of unreported cases since hardly any testing is done. They pointed out that almost half of all registered sewage treatment plants report an increasing viral load in wastewater tests.

The number of hospital admissions has also increased slightly, but are still a far cry from the occupation rate amid the pandemic. Last week it was two per 100,000 inhabitants. In the intensive care units, only 1.2 percent of all beds are occupied by Covid-19 patients.

Still, a good three-quarters (76.4 percent) of people in Germany have been vaccinated at least twice and thus have basic immunity, reported RKI. 

Since Monday, doctors’ offices have been vaccinating with the adapted vaccine from Biontech/Pfizer, available to anyone over 12 years old, with a vaccine for small children set to be released the following week and one for those between 5 and 11 to come out October 2nd.

But Health Minister Karl Lauterbach has so far only recommended that people over 60 and those with pre-existing conditions get vaccinated.

READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: Who should get a Covid jab this autumn in Germany?

“The pandemic is over, the virus remains,” he said. “We cannot predict the course of coming waves of corona, but it is clear that older people and people with pre-existing conditions remain at higher risk of becoming severely ill from Covid-19”

The RKI also recommended that people with a cold voluntarily wear a mask. Anyone exhibiting cough, cold, sore throat or other symptoms of a respiratory illness should voluntarily stay at home for three to five days and take regular corona self-tests. 

However, further measures such as contact restrictions are not necessary, he said.

One of many diseases

As of this autumn, Covid-19 could be one of many respiratory diseases. As with influenza, there are no longer absolute infection figures for coronavirus.

Saarbrücken pharmacist Thorsten Lehr told German broadcaster ZDF that self-protection through vaccinations, wearing a mask and getting tested when symptoms appear are prerequisites for surviving the Covid autumn well. 

Only a new, more aggressive mutation could completely turn the game around, he added.

On April 7th of this year, Germany removed the last of its over two-year long coronavirus restrictions, including mask-wearing in some public places.

READ ALSO: German doctors recommend Covid-19 self-tests amid new variant

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