User Perceptions of Security and Privacy Risks with Contact Tracing Apps

Abstract

This article explores Canadians’ response to their federal government’s release of the COVID-19 Tracing app for smartphones in 2020 during the pandemic. Researchers and industry have proposed cellphone-based contact tracing to help contain the spread of SARS-COV-2 virus in people during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the efficacy of contact tracing requires a certain threshold of participants and for people to enable specific access to communication ports on their mobile devices. Privacy and confidentiality concerns over users’ data on their personal devices have existed for years. Rightfully, industry watchdogs have raised concerns about the long-term consequences of contact tracing. As well questioning the potential confidentiality risks, privacy experts have also raised questions about whether contact tracing can curb the spread of the SARS-COV-2 virus. The uncertainty of this technology and pre-existing privacy concern could affect the adoption by the public. It is unknown how people perceive their security regarding contact tracing during the COVID-19 pandemic. This article presents early theoretical work and survey data taken from an ongoing study on participants’ perceptions of security and privacy perceptions of the COVID Alert contact-tracing app released in several Canadian provinces and territories during the 2020–2021 pandemic.