KUALA LUMPUR – The Malaysian mandatory Covid-19 tracking app MySejahtera has been updated with a new function called MySejahtera Trace (MySJ Trace), in a joint effort by the Science, Technology and Innovation Ministry, Health Ministry (MoH), and other agencies.
In a joint statement by the two ministries today, Putrajaya said that the add-on to the software will make it easier to trace close contacts of positive Covid-19 cases through Bluetooth technology.
“The MySJ Trace function was developed to meet the demands of the Find, Trace, Test, Isolate and Support programme, which is one of MoH’s monitoring programmes to prevent and control the spread of Covid-19.
“To ensure the efficiency of close contact tracing on positive Covid-19 cases, users must activate their Bluetooth on their mobile smart devices all the time.
“When an individual has been confirmed as positive, a notification can be obtained through the MySejahtera app to obtain approval to share any close contact information that was detected,” said the statement.
If the individual grants approval, MySejahtera will grant MoH access to conduct risk assessment on any close contact data detected from the Bluetooth.
It will then begin conducting close contact tracing activities on individuals that they have identified.
However, positive individuals can deny the request so MySejahtera does not grant MoH access to the data.
This will force MoH to conduct further investigation manually, tracing the positive case’s travel history and identifying who the individual had met.
“The MySJ Trace function uses an anonymised Unique User ID and will not collect user data nor geo-location. The data can only be accessed by MoH and will be kept in the smart device for 14 days.
“The privacy and secrecy of the database and the entire process of contact tracing is guaranteed by the government,” said the statement.
With the new update, the current check-in/out registration module will be phased out of the MySejahtera app.
The public is advised to update their MySejahtera apps to activate MySJ Trace’s functions.
Depending on the individual smartphone’s storehouse application, the new function can be updated today. – The Vibes, December 25, 2021
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