Page - 274 - in VULNERABLE - The Law, Policy and Ethics of COVID-19

VULNERABLE274 after testing positive or receiving a high-risk rating; and for sharing symptom data for further AI purposes) may lead to user confusion. The use of symptom data in combination with other data in unspeci- fied analytics may also create a re-identification risk. Socio-ethics Contact-tracing apps also raise social and ethical concerns. One con- cern is that these technologies are being rolled out on whole pop- ulations in a time of crisis and vulnerability. Technologies always present societal risks, but developers have an ethical obligation to anticipate these when possible; arguably, their responsibility is greater in a time when vulnerable populations are being asked to use untested and unproven technology. Bluetooth apps may err in assessing the significance of proximity, for example if a physical wall/barrier exists between two phones.24 AI-enabled apps may mis- calculate infection risk. Such errors could have important adverse consequences for users of the apps and, subsequently, for popula- tion health. Security experts have warned of trolling that could dis- rupt the functioning of such apps, including entering false symptom data and carrying the phone around areas where there are many people, such as grocery stores.25 Bluetooth also raises significant security concerns which may leave users vulnerable to other types of hacking and attack.26 As noted earlier, Bluetooth-enabled contact-tracing apps require a significant uptake within the population to make a difference. If uptake is insufficient, those who do adopt the app will be relying on an inaccurate tool to provide them with information about their risk of infection. Over-reliance by users is also possible given what we know of “automation bias,” or people’s tendency to place unwarranted faith 24. Rob Kitchin, “Using Digital Technologies to Tackle the Spread of the Coronavirus: Panacea or Folly” (21 April 2020), online (pdf): Maynooth  University <progcity. maynoothuniversity.ie/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Digital-tech-spread-of- coronavirus-Rob-Kitchin-PC-WP44.pdf>. 25. Andrew Crocker, Kurt Opsahl & Bennett Cyphers, “The Challenge of Proximity Apps for COVID-19 Contact Tracing” (10 April 2020), online: Electronic Frontier Foundation <www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/04/challenge-proximity-apps-covid- 19-contact-tracing>; Ross Anderson, “Contact Tracing in the Real World” (12 April 2020), online: Light  Blue  Touchpaper  Cambridge  University <www.light- bluetouchpaper.org/2020/04/12/contact-tracing-in-the-real-world/>. 26. Anderson, supra note 25.