Spoiler
The NHS has already begun building a second smartphone app to trace the spread of the coronavirus, after criticism of the first app it launched this week on the Isle of Wight.
The second NHS app will use technology provided by Google and Apple and is being developed “in parallel”, in case politicians decide to make a switch, according to two people familiar with the situation.
Matthew Gould, head of NHSX, the UK health service’s innovation arm, gave the go-ahead to the new project earlier this week.
The decision to build an alternative to the NHS’s original app, which gathers more data in a central database, came after pressure within the government over the technical and ethical issues of its initial approach.
One person involved said that talks with Apple and Google had intensified in the past few days, noting a sharp change of tack from last week to more “cordial and constructive” discussions “exploring how we might change course”.
The person said that, as testing had continued, the practicalities of making the first app work had become increasingly apparent. He noted a particular problem over its compatibility with the Apple iPhone, as well as broader worries about the implications for battery life. “These technical details end up being quite important,” he said.
Germany has already switched from its first app to using the smartphone makers’ standardised system. But France has been vocal in its opposition to how the Google-Apple standard limits countries’ options and access to data, and will launch its own system next week.
The UK’s efforts to create a second contact tracing app in parallel are more advanced than the feasibility study first disclosed through an NHS IT contract earlier this week. But no final decision has yet been made on which will be widely released.
Apple and Google have said that they expect to release the first version of their contact tracing system for public use, via a software update to the iOS and Android operating systems, in mid-May.
The NHS contact tracing system currently being tested stores anonymised data about people infected with Covid-19 and their contacts in a central database, which advocates have argued is vital for detecting patterns of infection.
By contrast, Google and Apple’s technology is largely decentralised and prevents gathering of additional data, such as location, that might be used to identify individuals.
Mr Gould still sees potential issues with Apple and Google’s approach, such as detecting fraudulent reports of infection, according to people familiar with his thinking.
But he has maintained that he is not wedded to the current app. “I want to provide some reassurance that just because we’ve started down one route doesn’t mean we’re locked into it,” he told MPs at a hearing of parliament’s joint committee on human rights on Monday.
That stance contrasts with Ian Levy, technical director at GCHQ’s National Cyber Security Centre, who has been the lead advocate of a centralised system, writing a 4,000-word blog post about it on Monday.
One person involved in the development of the app said NHSX was now feeling increasing pressure from parliament and privacy campaigners, despite Mr Levy’s assurances. A technical analysis of the app by Privacy International, published on Thursday, found that a loophole in app software could allow authorities access to detailed location data about users in future.
MPs on parliament’s human rights committee also said on Thursday that they had “significant concerns” about the app and called for new legislation guaranteeing data and human rights protections. Harriet Harman, the committee chair, said promises from ministers about privacy were not enough.
NHSX said: “We’ve been working with Apple and Google throughout the app’s development and it’s quite right and normal to continue to refine the app.”
