Thread by @ekryski

This is profoundly frustrating! 😡

The federal #COVIDAlert app is 100x more effective, is FREE, provides instant contact tracing and LITERALLY all that is required is for @jkenney and @shandro to state that @AHS_media can use it.

theglobeandmail.com/amp/canada/alb…

A thread 👇

Some history:

The #ABtracetogether app was copied by @Deloitte from an open source project initially created in Singapore. The #COVIDAlert app was created by volunteers from @Shopify and @BlackBerry and handed over to the Canada Digital Services team @CDS_GC who now maintain it.

As much as I'm sure he'd love to take claim for it, contrary to what our @Alberta_UCP has mentioned, the #COVIDAlert app is NOT "a @JustinTrudeau app".

Justin didn't make it.

It's a #Canadian app. Built by Canadians. For #Canadians. 🇨🇦 👏

Over the past 2 weeks I did an audit of the open source code for #COVIDAlert and the #abtracetogether apps. I got the #COVIDAlert app running and spoke with the @CDS_GC team now in charge of maintaining it.

It is well built. I can't say the same for the #abtracetogether system.

All you need to do is look at how often both apps are being maintained. There are a total of 11 updates over 6 months to the @Alberta_UCP funded apps combined. That's ~$63,000 per change.

Wish I got paid that much... 😐

Compare that to 2,400+ updates for #COVIDAlert.

The #abtracetogether app doesn't work the same way the #COVIDAlert app does and the difference around how it does the Bluetooth handshake with other apps to determine if they were "in contact" is important!

Part of the reason the #COVIDAlert app has been 100X more effective.

The #abtracetogether app requires people to be active, while the federal #COVIDAlert app allows people to be passive and not have to interact with the app in order to confirm contact with another app user.

This is VERY important if you want people to actually do contact tracing!

The #COVIDAlert codebase is better maintained and has better documentation. It also has better security, privacy, and well thought out data capture and retention policies. 🔒

These policies better comply with Canada's Privacy Act and PIPEDA because NO personal information is tied to your account and even then anonymous data is automatically deleted after 14 days. 😇

Whereas the #abtracetogether app uses your phone number and on Android needs geolocation permissions. While they claim the geolocation permissions are not used they could be exploited and this and a phone number tied to health data exposes to the user to more data breach risk. 😕

Furthermore, unlike with #COVIDAlert the server side code of the #abtracetogether app is not open source (which is the meat and potatoes) so it cannot be audited in the same way. It appears to be running on @Google's @Firebase which is not HIPAA/PIPEDA compliant by default. 😕

As a software developer and concerned citizen, it is clear that the #COVIDAlert app is the better technical solution and should be the de facto contract tracing solution. Particularly when @CMOH_Alberta and @jkenney have both acknowledged our lack of contact tracing capacity.

For Albertans to access the #COVIDAlert app there is literally NOTHING to do on the technical side. No code updates, no more money spent, no custom integrations. All that is required is to tell the @CDS_GC staff that #Alberta is taking part.

cc/ @CMOH_Alberta @shandro

There is already documentation for healthcare staff on how to use the web portal, readily available content to spread the word, and information on how to use the app: canada.ca/en/public-heal…

It could be well supported in days and cost NOTHING! 💸

All that the @AHS_media staff need to do is contact @CDS_GC to access the existing and ALREADY hosted web portal to get unique codes.

AHS staff provide this unique code when they inform people who tested positive during the phone calls they ALREADY make.

Then, a #COVID19 positive person simply puts a code into the app and 💥 the system securely and anonymously notifies anyone they've been in contact with who also has the app. Automatically. Instantly. And for FREE.

This could dramatically reduce costs and save lives! ❤️ 👩‍⚕️

Literally all that's needed is a few phone calls from @shandro, an internal email to AHS staff about the process, and a push from @AHS_media, politicians, prominent figures, and local media to get #Albertans to download the #COVIDAlert app (many already have). 🙂

Not to mention that people do travel across borders, and by using the #Canadian #COVIDAlert app we would have even better traceability for cases that result from cross country travel.

We should be pushing for a unified fight against #COVID19 in #Canada 🇨🇦. Not division.

Frankly, given that I just got a notification from my kids school about the first case of #COVID19 and the strain on AHS staff, I feel it's important we push our @Alberta_UCP government to do better.

.@jkenney and @shandro PLEASE do the right thing and let the people of Alberta access this best in class system. 🙏

If you aren't able to make small changes like these how can you ask all of us to make bigger changes to combat #COVID19AB?

I know people doing contact tracing, doctors, nurses, people that have had #COVID19. It's no joke.

Frankly, given the rising case load and decreased hospital capacity, the lack of action by our provincial government is, in my opinion, getting dangerously close to negligence.

God I hope this does something...

@CTVCalgary @ctvedmonton @GlobalCalgary @GlobalLeth @calgaryherald @Edmontonsun @RachelNotley @DShepYEG @nenshi @doniveson @TaraVeer @jasonfherring @CBCFletch @CarrieTait

See thread. 👆👆👆