The Role of Transparency in Digital Contact Tracing During COVID-19: Insights from an Expert Survey.

Health technologies such as apps for digital contract tracing [DCT] played a crucial role in containing and combating infections during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their primary function was to prevent the spread of SARS-CoV-2 by consistently generating and disseminating information related to various events such as encounters, vaccinations or infections. While the functionality of DCT has been well researched, the necessity of transparency in the use of DCT and the consent to share sensitive information such as users' health, vaccination and location status remains unclear. On one hand, DCT enabled the continuous monitoring of various risk factors, including data-based calculations of infection probabilities. On the other hand, digital monitoring of health risks was closely associated with various uncertainties, such as the ambiguous storage of personal data and its potential future misuse, e.g., by tech companies or health authorities. Our contribution aims to retrospectively analyze the COVID-19 pandemic from a post-pandemic perspective and utilize it as a case study for the implementation of new technological measures. We argue that under the condition of voluntary use of DCT, transparency plays a key role in convincing individuals to install health technologies on their mobile devices, keep them activated and consent to the sharing of sensitive data. We support our argument with qualitative data from an expert survey conducted between 2020 and 2021 and analyzed according to the principles of Grounded Theory.

Smartphone Apps for Containing the COVID-19 Pandemic in Germany: Qualitative Interview Study With Experts Based on Grounded Theory.

BACKGROUND: Smartphone apps, including those for digital contact tracing (DCT), played a crucial role in containing infections during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their primary function is to generate and disseminate information to disrupt transmissions based on various events, such as encounters, vaccinations, locations, or infections. Although the functionality of these apps has been extensively studied, there is still a lack of qualitative research addressing critical issues. OBJECTIVE: We will demonstrate that the use of DCT presents a challenge due to the tension between continuous health monitoring and uncertainties related to transparency and user sovereignty. On one hand, DCT enables the monitoring of various risk factors, including data-based calculations of infection probabilities. On the other hand, continuous risk management is intertwined with several uncertainties, including the unclear storage of personal data, who has access to it, and how it will be used in the future. METHODS: We focus on the German "Corona-Warn-App" and support our argument with empirical data from 19 expert interviews conducted between 2020 and 2021. The interviews were conducted using a semistructured questionnaire and analyzed according to the principles of grounded theory. RESULTS: Our data underscores 3 dimensions: transparency, data sovereignty, and the east-west divide. While transparency is considered an essential foundation for establishing trust in the use of DCT by providing a sense of security, data sovereignty is seen as a high value during the pandemic, protecting users from an undesired loss of control. The aspect of the east-west divide highlights the idea of incorporating sociocultural values and standards into technology, emphasizing that algorithms and data-driven elements, such as distance indicators, encounters, and isolations, are also influenced by sociocultural factors. CONCLUSIONS: The effective use of DCT for pandemic containment relies on achieving a balance between individual control and technological prevention. Maximizing the technological benefits of these tools is crucial. However, users must also be mindful of the information they share and maintain control over their shared data.