Have you received your COVID-19 update on your Android and Apple devices?

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Both smartphone devices are joining forces to battle the COVID-19 pandemic by introducing a notification system that will allow individuals to help track and alert each other about the coronavirus, per Google.

The update will allow your phones to track other phones who are in close range to one another and if a user chooses to participate in the program, test positive for COVID-19, and inputs the information into their phone, it will notify anyone who's in close range for a period of time.

Both companies released a joint statement on their participation:

We are making it easier and faster for them to use the Exposure Notifications System without the need for them to build and maintain an app.  Exposure Notifications Express provides another option for public health authorities to supplement their existing contact tracing operations with technology without compromising on the project's core tenets of user privacy and security.

Updates will be available for Apple devices for their iPhones and iPads with the iOS 13.7 today, and Google will make the system available for devices running on Android 6.0 or higher later in the month.

If you are skeptical of the update because of privacy issues, Google says the Exposure Notifications System was built with your privacy and security.  Also, your identification will not be shared with other users from Google or Apple.

READ MORE: See how some companies are changing their businesses to combat COVID-19

 

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