Digital Contact Tracing:
Privacy and Other Challenges

German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina 

​​​VIRTUAL PANEL

July 2020

The German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina held a virtual panel to explore the use of mobile software applications for contact tracing during the pandemic. Approaches to digital contact tracing vary, with some countries opting for decentralized models, where data is kept on users' smartphones, and other countries developing centralized digital tracking systems with tools such as mobile device trafficking and facial recognition.

The use of COVID-19 contact tracing apps has raised numerous questions, including with regard to effectiveness, privacy and data security. Panelists explored these questions through a discussion of different country experiences with contact tracing, focusing on the following:​
​

  1. What are the main approaches in digital contact tracing and how do these translate into app development?

  2. What are the main privacy, security, and acceptance concerns surrounding digital contact tracing?

  3. How can digital contact tracing be helpful in the relaxation of restrictions on public and economic life?​

 

PANELISTS

Sir Jonathan Montgomery​Professor of Healthcare Law, University College London, Chair of Oxford University Hospitals NHSFT and Non-executive Director of Health Data Research UK

Sir Jonathan Montgomery​

Professor of Healthcare Law, University College London, Chair of Oxford University Hospitals NHSFT and Non-executive Director of Health Data Research UK

Judith Simon​Professor of Ethics in Information Technology, University of Hamburg and member of the German Ethics Council

Judith Simon​

Professor of Ethics in Information Technology, University of Hamburg and member of the German Ethics Council

Douglas Leith​Professor of Computer Systems, Trinity College Dublin and founder of the Hamilton Institute, National University of Ireland at Maynooth

Douglas Leith​

Professor of Computer Systems, Trinity College Dublin and founder of the Hamilton Institute, National University of Ireland at Maynooth

Myongsei Sohn​Professor of Public Health and Executive Director, Institute for Global Engagement & Empowerment at Yonsei University

Myongsei Sohn​

Professor of Public Health and Executive Director, Institute for Global Engagement & Empowerment at Yonsei University

MODERATOR

Regina T. RiphahnVice President, German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina and Professor of Statistics and Empirical Economics, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg

Regina T. Riphahn

Vice President, German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina and Professor of Statistics and Empirical Economics, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg

 

Please visit the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina's website for more information on this panel.

Additional Resources

​VARIOUS MEDIA

COVID-19 Data Protection and Privacy Resources
​
UN Global Pulse has created, and continues to update, a select list of data protection and privacy resources related to the COVID-19 epidemic. Specific resource sub-topics include privacy, COVID-19 and the right to health; international/regional/industry initiatives to address privacy and data use for COVID-19; civil society initiatives to address privacy and data use for COVID-19; and data practices to address COVID-19.