NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- New phone apps in New York and New Jersey will alert people if they may have been exposed to COVID-19.
The new apps, called COVID Alert NY and COVID Alert NJ, were announced Thursday by Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Gov. Phil Murphy.
New York and New Jersey are joining Delaware and Pennsylvania in using the apps to create "a regional COVID Alert app network that operates across state lines to stop the spread of COVID-19." Connecticut has announced it will launch a similar app and join the network in the coming weeks.
The apps are available for free on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. The New York app can be downloaded here. The New Jersey app can be downloaded here.
The COVID Alert apps will notify users if they've been in close contact—within 6 feet for at least 10 minutes—with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19.
According to officials, the apps are completely anonymous and do not track or collect any location data or personal data. Instead, they use Bluetooth technology to detect if another user of the app who has tested positive for COVID-19 has come in close contact with you. Users' location, name or personally identifiable data are never disclosed, officials said.
The app in New York will work in conjunction with the apps in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and eventually Connecticut, allowing residents to be alerted when they're potentially exposed to the virus across state lines.
Here's how it works:
• As you go about your day, the app will use Bluetooth to sense any "close contact" near you—other app users who are within 6 feet of you for more than 10 minutes
• When the app senses a close contact, your phone will exchange a secure random code with the close contact's phone
• If you test positive for COVID-19, a public health representative from the local health department will call as part of the states' contact tracing programs and ask if you are willing to anonymously notify your "close contacts" by uploading your app's anonymous close contact codes
• Each day, the app will compare your list of close contact codes to the list of codes associated with positive COVID-19 app users. If there's a match, you will get an Exposure Alert, along with appropriate next steps to stay safe and prevent community spread like self-quarantining and getting tested
