Coronavirus, cybersecurity and contact tracing conflicts

Dr. Saif Abed, founding partner and director of cybersecurity advisory services at AbedGraham, writes about the pandemic and its effect on innovation, and cybersecurity. During this lockdown, as I hover between my real office and the office I actually use (otherwise known as the kitchen) I have been struck by how conflicted society is about the role of technology when it comes to handling this pandemic. This has especially been the case when it comes to contact tracing apps and platforms which have really captured the imagination of many corners of the global media.

Column inches have been devoted to mass surveillance, big brother and privacy rights in the face of apps being launched recently in Australia, India, Singapore and now the UK. Now privacy ethics are rightly high on the agenda but the focus, in my opinion, has become myopic and ignores many more immediate and serious issues.

First things first, are these platforms and their dependency on Bluetooth based proximity actually going to be effective and useful? Some of the most respected individuals in security such as Ross Anderson and Bruce Schneier have written blogs on this and I feel that hasn’t been discussed enough.