Fact check: No, Aarogya Setu app will NOT be used for surveillance

Last week, the government launched a mobile app called Aarogya Setu that aims to bring the people of India together in a resolute fight against coronavirus. 

The app enables people to assess themselves the risk for their catching the coronavirus infection. It calculates this based on their interaction with others, using cutting edge Bluetooth technology, algorithms and artificial intelligence.

Since then, the government has been pushing hard in promoting the app, asking people to install it in their devices. However, a prominent newspaper has alleged in an Op-Ed article that the government will use it for surveillance as it has the location access of a device it is installed in.

Dismissing the claim, the government has said that it is completely baseless and the app is not meant to be used for surveillance. 

The Press Information Bureau (PIB) took to Microblogging site Twitter to reject the article's claims and said that the app does not link user location and data with any sensitive personal data. The body also stressed that the app does not make the users vulnerable to hacking.

"Claim: a prominent newspaper has alleged in an Op-Ed that #ArogyaSetu will be used for surveillance.
Fact: This is baseless, the App does not link user location & data with any sensitive personal data. Also, it does not make users vulnerable to hacking," said PIB in the tweet.

Notably, PIB did not mention the name of the newspaper.

The government has earlier said that the app’s design ensures privacy-first. The personal data collected by the app is encrypted using state-of-the-art technology and stays secure on the phone until it is needed for facilitating medical intervention.