COVIDWISE, the official COVID-19 notification app for Virginia’s Department of Health (VDH), is COVID-19. This app was created in partnership with SpringML and uses a Bluetooth Low Energy API framework (BLE). It is the result of a unique collaboration between Apple, Google and SpringML.
COVIDWISE can be used by you to inform Virginians if you are suspected of being in close proximity to someone who has a positive COVID-19. You are helping your community to stay ahead of any resurgent trends by downloading COVIDWISE. This is crucial as the healthcare industry, business sector, healthcare institutions, religious organizations, sports/recreational activities, and other sectors rely on the ability to intervene in the right way to protect the health and economic viability of their communities.
How COVIDWISE works:
When someone reports that they have tested positive for BLE, their signal will be used to search for other users of the app who also shared the signal. BLE signals are time-stamped, and the app calculates how close they were based upon signal strength. The notification is sent to the other user if the exposure occurred within a time frame of at least 15 minutes. No names No location!
Even if exposure notification app closes, the BLE framework in COVIDWISE will continue to run in background. It won’t drain your device battery as fast as other apps that use Bluetooth or are open and running continuously.
COVIDWISE protects your privacy:
VDH is committed to protecting your privacy and confidentiality. We chose to use the Apple and Google BLE framework. This app does not collect any personal data. VDH does not need to know your location or identity in order for COVIDWISE software to function. The BLE technology can share signals with other app users if you are within close proximity.
All persons who have tested positive for COVID-19 will be sent their laboratory results to VDH. This information is not related to the app. Based on the laboratory report, our staff follow up with positive persons.
COVIDWISE – Anonymously share positive test results with COVIDWISE
VDH will send a text message immediately to any person who receives a positive COVID-19 laboratory result. This is to notify them quickly and to encourage them to stay at home. The text also lets individuals who have tested positive know they may retrieve an 8-digit verification code from the COVIDWISE Verification Portal at https://apps.vdh.virginia.gov/CWP. To verify your positive result, you will need to enter your name, date, and phone number.
To anonymously report a positive result, you can use the 8-digit verification code. Falsely reporting positive results could result in false exposure notifications. VDH wants app users to be confident that any COVID-19 exposure received via the app is real.
You may have noticed Exposure Notifications now available if you are running the latest Apple or Google operating systems. Apple and Google will remove the exposure notification service tools of their respective operating systems when the pandemic is over.
Thank you for downloading COVIDWISE! We can all work together to protect our families, friends, neighbors, colleagues, and keep Virginia moving ahead!
