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When the coronavirus arrived in Uruguay on March 13, the authorities announced that an app called “coronavirus UY” was being created. Three months later, on June 13, Apple approved the application with exposure alerts and, since June 15, the new update of the coronavirus UY app with the technology can be downloaded from iOS and Android. tracking.

On June 15, the Presidency published a statement in which it highlighted that “Uruguay is the first country in Latin America to have a mobile application that reports on exposure to COVID-19, highlighted the Minister of Industry, Omar Paganini, at the presentation of the new version of Coronavirus.uy. In addition, the Presidency added that "the digital tool was valued as a significant advance for the management of the pandemic at this stage of gradual opening of activities."

However, according to El Observador, "no Uruguayan received an alert" for exposure. According to sources linked to the development of the app, "the reason they attribute to it is the lack of activation of the system by the population," added El Observador. Later, this medium reported that the first alerts were issued today.

This July 22, the Ministry of Public Health posted on its website information about the application and also a user guide. In this statement, the MSP stated that "all the information collected is protected under the conditions provided by Law No. 18,331 and in the privacy policy of the application."

In turn, they said that “ exposure alerts are a valuable tool both for citizens (to be able to find out quickly about a certain risk of contagion) and for the authorities in terms of monitoring and response for the appearance of specific sources of contagion”.

Prior to this statement, at the government press conference on July 21, President Luis Lacalle Pou stated that "the Coronavirus UY application" for the public transport, although "we would recommend that all Uruguayans have this application. It is very good for detecting and reacting, which is the second step."

How to download the UY Coronavirus app?

The app is very easy to download. In the store of your smartphone (Playstore or App Store) you must search for “coronavirus UY” and then select the “download” option.

Once on your phone, you must read the terms and privacy policies, accept them and enable exposure alerts. By accepting these alerts, according to the app, "people who activate authorize their cell phones emit signals every few minutes that can be picked up by those of other participants who are nearby”.

How does the Coronavirus UY app work?

By accepting the issuance of alerts, the application exchanges, via Bluetooth, codes with other phones that have also accepted these alerts. If a person with whom you had close contact is diagnosed with COVID-19 (and informs the application) you will receive an alert to notify you and advise you on the steps to follow. According to the guide prepared by the authorities, "each person who receives a positive test result will have the possibility of collaborating with the rest of the population by giving their permission so that those who have recently had contact with them can receive a public alert," and He also adds that "he will have the security that these users will not know who he is or where they had contact":