The ACT government is decommissioning the Check in CBR mobile app used for contact tracing during the pandemic.
In a statement, ACT Health Secretary Rachel Stephen-Smith said the app will be shut down from December 1.
“[A]”As the ACT continues to work towards managing COVID-19 in a way that is more consistent with other infectious diseases, the app is no longer needed and will be shut down,” she said.
BIGGER BACKGROUND
Check in CBR was launched in September 2020 to assist with contact tracing of suspected COVID-19 cases in the ACT. It records the user’s location after scanning a QR code at public facilities. Newer versions of the app allow it to keep a person’s vaccination certificate and provide a link to report a positive COVID-19 test result.
When the state eased registration protocols in February, using the app became optional. Around that time, a A new feature was planned to be added to the app, allowing the app to automatically notify users if they are in a high risk COVID-19 environment.
Three months later, the government completely remove the task of using the application to register.
Minister Stephen-Smith sees the app as a “valuable resource” for the workplace and the wider community and to assist ACT Health in its response to the pandemic.
CBR Subscriptions have been downloaded more than 1.25 million times and have recorded 117 million registrations across more than 29,000 locations. More than 250,000 vaccination certificates have also been shared through the app.
Its shutdown follows a similar move by the federal government to decommission the national contact tracing app, COVIDSafe, in August.
While Australian governments are moving towards using contact tracing apps, New Zealand keeps them. Just a few weeks ago, the Department of Health began open-sourcing the NZ COVID Tracer app, allowing developers and researchers to help build trust in the integrity of the app. But like the rest of the world, the app is no longer needed for contact tracing, although the Department of Health wants users to keep the app for future outbreaks.
