Can Tech Track the Virus Without Shredding Privacy?

When Apple Inc. and Google announced they were jointly building tools to help limit the spread of the coronavirus, a debate about the benefits of such technologies and their drawbacks suddenly became much more concrete for users in the U.S. and Europe. Countries in Asia had been turning to technology since the early days of the outbreak, including with some applications that went further in drawing on personal data.

Apple and Google, a division of Alphabet Inc., are building a tool for the 3 billion users of their phones, one that would use Bluetooth wireless technology to allow public health agencies to track what phones come near each other. When users report via a public health agency’s app to having become infected with the coronavirus, the app would notify anyone whose phone had been in close contact during the previous several days. In theory, that could allow much faster tracking of those who may have been exposed and steer them to get tested or enter quarantine.