ND Is Getting A New App To Help Track Coronavirurs

At today's press conference, Governor Doug Burgum had a "fun" announcement (his words). Beginning later this evening, you can track where you've been during the Coronavirus pandemic. Is this "fun" news, or is leadership prying into our personal lives going too far?

Governor Burgum stated, "As of 2:50 this afternoon, approval was given by the Apple store for a new app called Care-19." The FREE app was jointly created with the North Dakota Department of Health and the State of North Dakota, in partnership with ProudCrowd (remember the Bison tracker app? Basically the same thing from the same people). Since the app was just approved today, Governor Burgum did say it might take until this evening for the app to be available for download.

Information about the app came from ProudCrowd CEO TIm Brookings via call-in. He said that Care-19 is not meant to track your every move, but rather, it helps you remember where you've been (in case you contract COVID-19 and need to report where you've recently been). You won't be tracked for things like going outside for a walk. However, if you're in a place among people for 15 minutes or more, the app will log it.

Again, it was specified that you don't have to be concerned about the app keeping track of your every move and your information. This is completely anonymous and private. Brookings said that when you set this app up, you get a 36-digit random number, your information is unknown, and you can erase your data at any time. This app, "Helps the government get a feel on how public is interacting," said Brookings. Then, the government will have a better feel  and get a better feel for when the safety requirements can be relaxed.