Contact Tracing in the Real World: contact tracing in the real world is not quite as many of the academic and industry proposals assume.
First, it isn’t anonymous.
Second, contact tracers have access to all sorts of other data such as public transport ticketing and credit-card records.
Third, you can’t wait for diagnoses.
Fourth, the public health authorities need geographical data for
purposes other than contact tracing – such as to tell the army where to
build more field hospitals, and to plan shipments of scarce personal protective equipment.
Fifth, although the cryptographers – and now Google and Apple – are
discussing more anonymous variants of the Singapore app, that’s not the
problem. Anyone who’s worked on abuse will instantly realise that a
voluntary app operated by anonymous actors is wide open to trolling.
Sixth, there’s the human aspect.
