COVID-19 “Alert PA App” Can Help PA Residents Identify Exposure to Virus

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COVID Alert PA app can notify Pennsylvania residents if they may have been exposed to COVID-19 without revealing their identity or location. Since the announcement, roughly 50,000 Pennsylvanians have downloaded the app.

COVID Alert PA is a free, voluntary mobile app developed by the Pennsylvania Department of Health in partnership with NearForm, UPenn and MIT Lincoln Laboratory using the Apple and Google Exposure Notification System. The app’s features include an interactive COVID-19 symptom checker, opt-in for alerts for potential exposures to the virus, updates on the latest public health data about COVID-19 in PA and advice for what to do if you have a potential exposure to COVID-19.

The app can be found in the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store by searching for “covid alert pa.” The app is designed with privacy at the forefront. The app does not use GPS, location services, or any movement or geographical information.

Here’s how COVID Alert PA works:

  • The app uses anonymous Bluetooth low energy proximity technology to know when your phone is within 6 feet of another phone with the app for 15 minutes or more.
  • When an app user confirms a positive COVID-19 test result in the app, it will check to see if it matches any of the anonymous Bluetooth close contact interactions your phone has had over the last 14 days.
  • If there is a match, COVID Alert PA may send an alert after taking into account the date, duration of exposure and the Bluetooth signal strength (which is used to estimate how close your phone was to the phone of the person having a positive test result).

Find more information on the COVID Alert Pennsylvania app here