The new Covid-19 tracker app is live – here’s how to use it

Thousands have already signed up for the app.

The new Covid-19 tracker app is now live in Ireland. The app, which will be officially launched by the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive today, allows users to facilitate contract tracing, while ensuring they have the most up to date information about Covid-19 and their own symptoms. People who use the app will:

• Be alerted if they have been in close contact with another app user who has tested positive for coronavirus
•  Be able to track any symptoms they have and get advice on what to do to themselves yourself and others
•  Be able to anonymously warn other app users that they were in close contact with, if they test positive for coronavirus

Once you download the app, you will be asked to enable contact tracing. This will allow the app to alert you if you have been in contact with somebody who tested positive for Covid-19, who also has the app. The app will ask users to "check-in" every day, to track how the virus is affecting Ireland. The first time you check-in, you will be asked for your gender, your age, and your county (all optional). Users will then be asked: "How are you feeling today?" to which there are two responses: "I'm good, no symptoms," or "I'm not feeling well today." The app tracks check-ins each day so users can view their own history, as well as the national picture (ie; the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases per county). At the time of writing, over 50,000 people have downloaded the Covid-19 tracker. 99 percent of people have reported "feeling good" with 1 percent reporting "some symptoms." The Covid-19 tracker app will be officially launched by Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly this morning. You can download the Covid-19 tracker app here.  Find out more about the app and information about privacy and data here.