COVID-19 and Flattening the Curve — An Australian-made Solution for Australians
We’re living in strange times and it has been frightening for everybody.
With attempts to flatten the curve, countries around the world have had different approaches. Some of these include heavy laws with examples including Hong Kong’s tracking bracelets, and Israel’s legislation change to track phones. These have had varying degrees of success.
While measures like these can be a great deterrent (after all, nothing sounds more alarm bells than the state tracking your location 24/7), a similar approach, undoubtedly, is not for Australia.
Other approaches are simply not that practical. In-person checks put police officers at risk of being infected as well (and then, consequently, whoever they check on after meeting someone with the infection). Designated hotels for self-isolation are expensive.
The Solution
Based in Sydney, UCOT Australia Pty Ltd has produced an app called UPhoto which can remove the need to make legislative amendments to privacy laws required to track mobile phones and ensure people are following mandatory self-isolation and social distancing laws.
UPhoto
UPhoto creates a fingerprint of the digital file which is then recorded on the blockchain. The properties of blockchain mean that once this information is recorded, it can no longer be altered. This ensures that the authenticity of the image stays true to what was seen by the camera sensor at the moment of capture.
Photos taken and uploaded by UPhoto are guaranteed to be authentic, stored securely and tamper-proof once recorded and encrypted onto the blockchain.
Implementation
UPhoto makes implementing enforcement easy.
Border Security and State Police request the UPhoto app to be downloaded and record persons’ names, mobile numbers and the address of isolation.
Police can then randomly send a message and request a photo to be taken within a time period. The photo will automatically verify the GPS location.
If the person in isolation fails to provide a photo containing details of their location and whereabouts they are subject to a fine or gaol time depending on the rules enforced in their state.
When you take a picture with UPhoto, the data from the camera lens is captured directly along with key metadata information such as file size, time taken, and location.
No legislation changes are needed and any interruptions are minimal. The people are protected, not only from COVID-19 but also in terms of their privacy. Those who are self-isolating can also choose their address of isolation.
Download
You can head to the app store to download UPhoto.
About UCOT
UCOT based in Sydney is a global-oriented “blockchain ecosystem” developed by the “Ultimo Digital Technology (UDT)” team that brings together experts from Australia’s UTS network security labs and CSIRO professors and elite scientists as well as recognised leaders in the IoT and security research communities who have extensive experience in delivering industry solutions.
Their research partners include: UNSW, UTS and Monash University
Contact info@ucot.world for more information.
Written by Jenny Jingjing Li
