Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Are government agencies and big tech tracking your every move via your smartphone?
The answer is maybe.
Gov. Jay Inslee has repeatedly said the state is using smartphone data to track interactions and travel as it may relate to coronavirus exposure and spread. That data may include time, date, location and even a "marker" for each mobile device.
Indeed, anytime your cellphone is turned on, it connects to towers for telephone calls or texting. Using three tower connections, it's possible to triangulate the location of the phone. That occurs even if you turn off Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and location data. And if you use Bluetooth or Wi-Fi services to connect to your smartphone to other devices, location is easily tracked as data is transmitted.
So far, the governor has denied that the state has any access to individual data. But with the operating system update that installed on your cellphone in the last week or so, the question on whether you're being tracked just got more complicated.
Google and Apple announced in April that they were working on a coronavirus tracking system. That system was included in the most recent system software update.
If you use an Android device, your smartphone now sports a "COVID-19 Exposure Notifications" setting. To find it, go to your settings menu and scroll down to Google settings. The new "service" appears at the top of the list of your Google settings. Depending on your Apple device, you can find it by tapping your privacy menu, followed by health.
Google and Apple are calling the new update "COVID-19 exposure logging." Both say their notification settings don't work without downloading an additional application that allows smartphones to communicate with each other, as well as big tech.
That may be true. But don't forget that your smartphone and account are most likely registered to you. And it wouldn't be hard to connect the dots between your device and you.
If you want to protect your privacy rights, you should know how to curtail smartphone tracking.
When you locate the new setting, the exposure logging's default should be "off." But that may not be enough for your comfort level.
On Android devices, the coronavirus notification system has related questions on location and Bluetooth. If both are turned on, then your phone's location is discoverable by other devices, some of which may have the coronavirus tracking activated.
Again, both Google and Apple have said the system doesn't work unless you specifically download an additional coronavirus application, which not only monitors your location, but also your time and proximity to other devices - and most likely, their user. That data is shared with others on the network, including big tech and probably government officials and health agencies.
I'm not sure if I believe Google or Apple, especially since they can moneatize information gleaned from consumers' smartphones.
I certainly don't believe the governor and other officials involved in this coronavirus scare. Those same officials falsely predicted high mortality rates to shut down our communities and quash freedoms guaranteed by our state and federal constitutions. They were also disingenuous so they could snag N95 surgical masks for themselves. And they've pushed to quarantine the healthy rather than the sick.
If you're skeptical like me and don't think you should be tracked, I suggest you make sure the coronavirus, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and location services are turned off in your settings and health menus. Install and subscribe to a VPN (virtual private network), which disguises your phone's actual location. Turn off your smartphone when you're not using it, or leave it at home. And don't check in on social media platforms.
Those suggestions won't prevent over-reaching government and health officials or big tech from knowing a lot about you, your whereabouts and interactions. But they will help you to protect your right to privacy.
- Roger Harnack is the publisher of Free Press Publishing. Email him at ---Roger@cheneyfreepress.com.
Roger Harnack is the co-owner/publisher of Free Press Publishing. Having grown up Benton City, Roger is an award-winning journalist, photographer, editor and publisher. He's one of only two editorial/commentary writers to ever receive the international Golden Quill. Roger is dedicated to the preservation of local media, and the voice it retains for Eastern Washington.
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