Earlier in the summer, Berlin nightlife resumed under conditions imposed by the government. Many involve now-everyday procedures to prevent COVID-19 transmission like keeping a safe social distance from others and wearing masks. One of the more complicated rules for reopening requires all establishments to keep a log of patrons for contract tracing purposes. In an effort to make this practice easier for proprietors, music tech professionals have introduced a new app called closecontact.
To use the web app, concertgoers will enter their information on the site and then will be provided with a QR code that venue staff will scan to receive the encrypted contact information. This data is stored and is accessible only to the club’s administrator if they need to provide it to the health department. This, in turn, will help venues collect information in a quick and effective way without the need for manual entry.
The process, as it is explained on the closecontact website, requires each user to enter their contact information online. The application will then produce an encrypted personal pass that they can screen shot and show to a club’s door staff. Neither the club nor closecontact can access the personal information connected to each pass unless decryption of certain dates and times is required by health professionals.
Privacy Concerns
The developers have stated that the information will be deleted from the clubs 30 days after scanning and that the data is encrypted so only the club’s administrator can access it. The closecontact team also shared that they are not interested in monetizing the product or users’ data. Furthermore, it’s been noted that the check-in data is not even readable by the developers themselves, providing an extra level of security.
At the time of writing, the application is only available for those in Berlin. On their website, however, they have provided an email address for prospective users outside the city. You can find more information on closecontact and sign up for the program yourself on their website.
Image credit: Alexander Popov
