Works for me, although some customers have not put up the QR codes today but explanations below.
So how does the app work if it doesn’t collect personal data? The system works by using two different codes. Each day it creates a new code for your device which is stored on your phone. Then every 15 minutes it produces another random code that is shared and stored on the devices it communicates with via Bluetooth. All of these codes are deleted after 14 days.
When someone tests positive they can allow their phone to share the daily codes with other app users. The app does this by sharing the codes related to your phone with a central Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) server that pushes the codes to every other phone with the app installed. Any codes sent to the DHSC server are deleted after 14 days. If there are matches and the risk score is high enough, people will get an alert saying they’ve been in touch with someone who tested positive.
If you book a test via the app it will generate a code that lets people link their test results with the app automatically. These test codes are deleted 24 to 48 hours after they’re created.
The app isn’t just about Bluetooth contact tracing though – this is where it differs from other apps around the world. It also allows people to check their symptoms against a list of current Covid-19 indicators provided by England’s chief medical officer. These include high temperatures, a new continuous cough, changes to sense of smell and taste, and more. Entering symptoms will result in an indication of whether someone will need to self-isolate.
The app also allows people to order a test through the NHS Test and Trace website, offers a countdown of how long people need to self-isolate for if they are doing so, and can provide risk levels in people’s local area (based on the first part of their postcode).
The way the app deviates most from others around the world is through its use of QR codes. Through an in-app camera function, which you will need to give permission to use, it is able to scan QR codes at venues and log where you have been. The government has made it possible for pubs, restaurants and other venues to create their own QR codes through a generator on its site.
Like the rest of the app, QR codes don’t send any information to a central server and they don’t store people’s personal information. They exist as a way for people to remember where they have been, in case they need to tell contact tracers their activities. The QR code function can be turned on and off in the app and it’s possible to delete the records they create.
QR code check-ins are stored on a phone for 21 days – this allows for 14 days for the virus to appear and seven days when people are most likely to be infectious.
If you don't bother to download it and use the app then stay indoors is you best bet to staying safe.
