Beware the Lofty Promises of Covid-19 ‘Tracker’ Apps

Beware the Lofty Promises of Covid-19 ‘Tracker’ Apps

4 years ago
Anonymous $-9GJQVHNr8

https://www.wired.com/story/beware-the-lofty-promises-of-covid-19-tracker-apps/

Since the world began its battle against the outbreak of Covid-19, mobile apps have promised to do it all: pinpoint infections, predict who may be at highest risk, learn how long the virus survives on surfaces, estimate the fraction of asymptomatic carriers, target medical resources, prevent people from being exposed, the list goes on. And while some mobile apps can indeed be useful as we adapt to life with this virus, there is also evidence that by skewing our understanding of this disease, certain apps are more harmful than helpful.

Kaiser Fung has been the data science lead at various companies. He is the author of Numbers Rule Your World. You can find all three installments of his comprehensive review of this study on his blog, Junk Charts.

Beware the Lofty Promises of Covid-19 ‘Tracker’ Apps

May 13, 2020, 12:35pm UTC
https://www.wired.com/story/beware-the-lofty-promises-of-covid-19-tracker-apps/ > Since the world began its battle against the outbreak of Covid-19, mobile apps have promised to do it all: pinpoint infections, predict who may be at highest risk, learn how long the virus survives on surfaces, estimate the fraction of asymptomatic carriers, target medical resources, prevent people from being exposed, the list goes on. And while some mobile apps can indeed be useful as we adapt to life with this virus, there is also evidence that by skewing our understanding of this disease, certain apps are more harmful than helpful. > Kaiser Fung has been the data science lead at various companies. He is the author of Numbers Rule Your World. You can find all three installments of his comprehensive review of this study on his blog, Junk Charts.