‘These are strange times. Germany, perhaps the most privacy conscious nation on earth, is considering a mobile phone app that would trace the contacts of anyone infected with Covid-19.
‘So are we becoming more relaxed about privacy because of the pandemic, or are we in danger of allowing governments and corporations to trample over our rights using the excuse of the emergency?...
‘Earlier this week the British Prime Minister shared a picture of an online Cabinet meeting, complete with the Zoom meeting ID and the usernames of ministers. And millions of us are sharing views of our kitchens over this and other video-conferencing apps, without apparently being too concerned about poor privacy controls.
‘Meanwhile, the National Health Service in England has sent out a document that appears to mark a shift in its policy on patient data, giving staff more latitude to share information relating to the coronavirus. In particular, it mentions the use of data to understand trends in the spread and impact of the virus and “the management of patients with or at risk of Covid-19 including: locating, contacting, screening, flagging and monitoring such patients”.’
Read here (BBC, April 2, 2020)
