COVID-19 private health information will no longer be private

A recent update on both iPhones and Droid phones allows our phones to publish our COVID-19 private health information (PII). Some of us may not even know this is happening. Here’s how to find out if your phone is.

On an iPhone, choose Settings > Privacy > Health and you get a screen with COVID-19 Exposure Logging near the top.

COVID-19 private health information can be broadcast by your phone

COVID-19 Exposure Logging is currently off. “Why the worry Mark,” you may ask. The worry is because I did not intentionally add this functionality. It appeared one day. I do not have an app to transmit data yet. However, I am nervous that a future iOS update will include a surprise app that will transmit this information and worse, the app will be turned on.
Without my knowledge.

You should be nervous too

Imagine walking into a restaurant and having the hostess look at a tablet and report, “I am sorry. We cannot let you eat here. You had recent contact with a COVID-19 carrier. Please leave now.” This could happen. If your phone is promiscuously collecting data from other phones that cross your path, then your phone will share that data. Its like somebody putting pink stickers on everybody’s shirt. He gets to you and applies a pink sticker. You then enter a restaurant. The hostess sees your pink sticker and asks you to leave.

Denied food, water and shelter?

Scary, right? We are close to that. You can end up being denied food, water or shelter. All this happened because you and others are letting your phones broadcast COVID-19 private health information about people who have crossed your path. Do not let this happen to you. Check your phone often. Make sure you are not broadcasting COVID-19 exposure information.

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Content from How Hacks Happen and how to protect yourself. Visit https://howhackshappen.com and view three chapters online for FREE today or visit https://www.amazon.com/How-Hacks-Happen-protect-yourself/dp/0983576920/. By Mark Anthony Germanos, of https://cybersafetynet.net/about-cyber-safety-net/.