• About Us
    • Fact Checking Policy
    • Ownership & funding information
    • Volunteer
  • Subscribe
  • Letter submission
    • Submissions Policy
  • Contact Us
The Online Citizen Asia
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Comments
  • Current Affairs
    • Singapore
    • Malaysia
    • Indonesia
    • China
    • ASEAN
    • Asia
    • International
  • Finance
    • Economics
    • Labour
    • Property
    • Business
  • Community
    • Arts & Culture
    • Consumer Watch
    • NGO
    • Lifestyle
    • Travel
  • Politics
    • Civil Society
    • Parliament
    • Transport
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Health
    • Housing
  • Law & Order
    • Legislation
    • Court Cases
No Result
View All Result
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Comments
  • Current Affairs
    • Singapore
    • Malaysia
    • Indonesia
    • China
    • ASEAN
    • Asia
    • International
  • Finance
    • Economics
    • Labour
    • Property
    • Business
  • Community
    • Arts & Culture
    • Consumer Watch
    • NGO
    • Lifestyle
    • Travel
  • Politics
    • Civil Society
    • Parliament
    • Transport
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Health
    • Housing
  • Law & Order
    • Legislation
    • Court Cases
No Result
View All Result
The Online Citizen Asia
No Result
View All Result

Data privacy, ‘unexciting’ interface and battery-draining issue are reasons why Singaporeans are not downloading TraceTogether app

by The Online Citizen
20/05/2020
in Tech
Reading Time: 5 mins read
0

On 20 March this year, the Government launched Singapore’s own contact-tracing app called TraceTogether to try and control the spread of the deadly COVID-19 in the country. The app uses Bluetooth signal between phones to detect other TraceTogether used in close proximity, which allows easy contact tracing when someone is tested positive for the virus.
“We will need to make full use of information technology, IT, so that when we discover COVID-19 cases, we can trace more efficiently where they have been, and whom they have been in contact with,” said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong last month in a national address.
However, he added that for this app to work, the Government will need everyone’s cooperation to install and use the app.
National Development Minister Lawrence Wong said that in order for the app to be effective, at least three-quarter of the 5.6 million population must download it.
However, this app has only been downloaded by about 17 per cent of the Singaporean population since its launch in March.
One of the reasons for the low download rate is because of data privacy.
Zhu Yong Quan, a final-year student at the National University of Singapore, told South China Morning Post (SCMP) that he is reluctant to sign up for the app as he has concerns about his personal data being used by the Government for surveillance purposes.
Although the Government has explained the kind of data they would retrieve and how this will be used to solely contact those who may have potentially contracted the virus, the 25-year-old student still remain cautious.
“If I sign up for the app, I am afraid of how it could potentially reveal locations that I have visited, and what it might disclose about my movement,” he said.
Experts have revealed that the people of Singapore are wary towards the app because of a combination of factors, including if their data will be protected and what it will be used for.
“At the heart of this is a trust issue,” said Teo Yi-Ling, a senior fellow at the S.Rajaratnam School of International Studies’ Centre of Excellence for National Security. She added that despite assurance from the authorities that the data would not be misused, people still can recall the past incidents of cyberattacks on government databases.
One such instances happened in 2018 when hackers got hold of about 1.5 million patients’ non-medical personal particulars. These patients have visited SingHealth’s specialist outpatient clinics and polyclinics and their details were illegally accessed and copied. The data taken include name, NRIC number, address, gender, race and date of birth. Information on the outpatient dispensed medicines of about 160,000 of these patients were also exfiltrated, and the authorities described this incident as the “most serious breach of personal data”.
“The concern about data security may be the thought of ‘[not wanting to] let the authorities have this data about me because I don’t know if it will be safe’,” Ms Teo said while speaking at a panel discussion on the use of data gathering tools by the Institute of Policy Studies last week.
She added that knowing the tracing app installed on one’s smartphone “hits closer to the bone in terms of feeling that your movement has been traced”, although the entire Republic is covered with surveillance cameras. According to a 2019 report by UK consumer comparison website Comparitech, Singapore takes the 11th spot for the most-surveilled city in the world.
There’s another app that was introduced called SafeEntry, where people who visit businesses have to get their NRIC scanned, with their details stored in the Government’s database. On the other hand, TraceTogether store data on a person’s person and would be accessed only when needed.
Based on this, Ms Teo said that it all comes down to transparency on how the Government clearly explains to the people on how their data would be used, as well as measures that would be in place to secure them.
Separately, associate professor at University College London, Jung Won Sonn, pointed out that in South Korea, the contact-tracing strategy required the Government to look into an individual’s bank transactions and transport data, but the process was “relatively transparent” despite not having any public consultation.
“The Koreans already saw what happened in China. People were quite understanding,” said Dr Jung, who was also on the panel.

Boring interface and battery-draining issue

Besides data privacy, experts have also highlighted other reasons that hinder people from downloading the app.
Lawrence Loh, an associate professor of business administration at NUS, said that the interface of the app is “unexciting”, adding that turning on the Bluetooth would drain the battery.
Temasek Holding CEO Ho Ching also condemned the app for draining the battery life of iPhones.
The app, she observed, requires users to “keep their phones on all the time, and to keep it upside down and in battery saving mode so that the iPhones won’t drain off dreadfully quickly”.
“One among us has just found out that he needed to leave his iPhone upside down in his pocket, so he is still at the start of using the app,” Mdm Ho, who is also the spouse of PM Lee, added.
She highlighted that based on a “quick check-in” with a chat group of ten users, “the young ones” had stopped using the app and became “irritated by all the msgs to turn the app on”.
To curb this, the authorities noted that they are now working with Apple and Google to improve the functionality of the app, and are considering to introduce wearable dongles for non-smartphone users.
Meanwhile, Ang Swee Hoon, an associate professor of business administration at NUS told SCMP that the low download rate for TraceTogether could be possibly due to a lack of marketing. She asserted that people have been more focused on other big announcements by the Government, and not so much on the app.
“News has been talking about all these other measures and we only have a finite attention span..that might have taen away from the tracing app,” Ms Ang said. As a solution, she said that the Government could make use of the advertisements on national broadsheets, which were initially utilised to advocate frequent handwashing during the early days of the outbreak.
On the other hand, Ms Teo stated that some people may not be sure on how to react to the Government taking their data. This is because when people offer information to corporations, there was a form of transaction being made.
“But in terms of the Government wanting to use my data, I am now sure what I get in return. Maybe that’s not clear yet, and maybe that’s something the Government has to assure people of,” she said.
But for some Singaporeans, the decision to download the app boils down to if more people use the app or if the virus situation gets really out of control.
“I know it’s a social responsibility to download the app, but that won’t work unless a significant proportion of the population are using it. I’m just not sure if it’s a trade-off I’m willing to take right now,” said Zhu, the NUS student.
 

For just US$7.50 a month, sign up as a subscriber on The Online Citizen Asia (and enjoy ads-free experience on our site) to support our mission to transform TOC into an alternative mainstream press.

Related Posts

Leong Mun Wai calls for a reset of housing policies to deliver affordable and accessible HDB flats and protect retirement adequacy
Politics

Leong Mun Wai calls for a reset of housing policies to deliver affordable and accessible HDB flats and protect retirement adequacy

07/02/2023
LTA revises ERP rates up after latest review; Gantries reach as high as S$5 for 8:30am – 9:00am
Singapore

LTA revises ERP rates up after latest review; Gantries reach as high as S$5 for 8:30am – 9:00am

07/02/2023
Stern warnings was an “in-between” solution as CPIB lacks sufficient evidence to prosecute six former KOM executives for bribery, said Indranee Rajah
Parliament

Stern warnings was an “in-between” solution as CPIB lacks sufficient evidence to prosecute six former KOM executives for bribery, said Indranee Rajah

06/02/2023
19-year-old delivery rider in China covers 5km in 22 minutes to deliver antivenom to woman who had bitten by snake
China

19-year-old delivery rider in China covers 5km in 22 minutes to deliver antivenom to woman who had bitten by snake

06/02/2023
Why is Gautam Adani’s Indian empire in turmoil?
AFP

Adani shares dive again as Indian opposition stages demos

06/02/2023
Josephine Teo defends SPH Media Trust in Parliament on its circulation scandal; Commitment of S$900 million funding will still be made available
Singapore

Josephine Teo defends SPH Media Trust in Parliament on its circulation scandal; Commitment of S$900 million funding will still be made available

06/02/2023
Subscribe
Connect withD
Login
I allow to create an account
When you login first time using a Social Login button, we collect your account public profile information shared by Social Login provider, based on your privacy settings. We also get your email address to automatically create an account for you in our website. Once your account is created, you'll be logged-in to this account.
DisagreeAgree
Notify of
Connect withD
I allow to create an account
When you login first time using a Social Login button, we collect your account public profile information shared by Social Login provider, based on your privacy settings. We also get your email address to automatically create an account for you in our website. Once your account is created, you'll be logged-in to this account.
DisagreeAgree
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Latest posts

Leong Mun Wai calls for a reset of housing policies to deliver affordable and accessible HDB flats and protect retirement adequacy

Leong Mun Wai calls for a reset of housing policies to deliver affordable and accessible HDB flats and protect retirement adequacy

07/02/2023
LTA revises ERP rates up after latest review; Gantries reach as high as S$5 for 8:30am – 9:00am

LTA revises ERP rates up after latest review; Gantries reach as high as S$5 for 8:30am – 9:00am

07/02/2023
Stern warnings was an “in-between” solution as CPIB lacks sufficient evidence to prosecute six former KOM executives for bribery, said Indranee Rajah

Stern warnings was an “in-between” solution as CPIB lacks sufficient evidence to prosecute six former KOM executives for bribery, said Indranee Rajah

06/02/2023
19-year-old delivery rider in China covers 5km in 22 minutes to deliver antivenom to woman who had bitten by snake

19-year-old delivery rider in China covers 5km in 22 minutes to deliver antivenom to woman who had bitten by snake

06/02/2023
Why is Gautam Adani’s Indian empire in turmoil?

Adani shares dive again as Indian opposition stages demos

06/02/2023
Josephine Teo defends SPH Media Trust in Parliament on its circulation scandal; Commitment of S$900 million funding will still be made available

Josephine Teo defends SPH Media Trust in Parliament on its circulation scandal; Commitment of S$900 million funding will still be made available

06/02/2023
Japanese-Canadian junior high school girl breaks national record with 3km in 9:02 mins

“I want my normal life back,” Sherry Drury withdraws from National Junior High School Tournament due to overheated public attention

06/02/2023
FY2023 Budget Statement to be delivered by Lawrence Wong on 14 Feb, 3.30pm

FY2023 Budget Statement to be delivered by Lawrence Wong on 14 Feb, 3.30pm

06/02/2023

Trending posts

Former Singaporean shares change of life in Australia with annual pay of S$80,000 as a plumber

Former Singaporean shares change of life in Australia with annual pay of S$80,000 as a plumber

by Yee Loon
30/01/2023
25

...

Cognizant India transfers staff to work in Singapore as recently as this year

Local IT grads can’t find jobs while engineers constantly transferred from India to work in SG under CECA

by Correspondent
05/02/2023
96

...

They have done a fine job of confusing us about the jobs situation

They have done a fine job of confusing us about the jobs situation

by Augustine Low
01/02/2023
47

...

Adani’s brother runs SG company and registers as director with local ID

Adani’s brother runs SG company and registers as director with local ID

by Correspondent
03/02/2023
26

...

No response from Josephine Teo on whether Mediacorp has been instructed to stop coverage of SMT circulation scandal

No response from Josephine Teo over alleged blackout of coverage by Mediacorp over SMT circulation scandal

by Terry Xu
06/02/2023
11

...

Excessively charging for an essential need, and calling it affordable because people still can pay for it?

by Terry Xu
31/01/2023
40

...

May 2020
M T W T F S S
 123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
25262728293031
« Apr   Jun »

The Online Citizen is a regional online publication based in Taiwan and formerly Singapore’s longest-running independent online media platform.

Navigation

  • Editorial
  • Commentaries
  • Opinion
  • Politics
  • Community

Support

  • Contact Us
  • Letter submission
  • Membership subscription

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Fact Checking Policy
  • Privacy Policy

© 2022 - 2023 The Online Citizen Asia

No Result
View All Result
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Commentaries
    • Comments
  • Current Affairs
    • Malaysia
    • Indonesia
    • China
    • ASEAN
    • Asia
    • International
  • Finance
    • Economics
    • Labour
    • Property
    • Business
  • Community
    • Civil Society
    • Arts & Culture
    • Consumer Watch
    • NGO
  • Politics
    • Parliament
    • Transport
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Health
    • Housing
  • Law & Order
    • Legislation
    • Court Cases
  • Lifestyle
    • Travel
  • Subscribers login

© 2022 - 2023 The Online Citizen Asia

wpDiscuz