The DMV will adopt Apple and Google’s new COVID notification system to help trace the virus across the area.
DC, Maryland and Virginia will be among the first states to adopt Apple and Google’s new contact tracing software that allows public health officials to notify residents if they have been near someone who tested positive.
The “Exposure Notifications Express” was released earlier in April in a joint effort from Apple and Google to help officials with coronavirus contact tracing. Using Bluetooth technology, the software monitors any possible instances in which you might have been exposed without sharing location data or the user’s identity.
Initially, the software required states to develop their own contact tracing apps–Virginia was the nation’s first state to create an app with such technology, COVIDWISE, earlier in August–now, DMV residents can opt to use the new contact tracing technology by simply enabling the exposure notification on their iPhone settings with the new iOS 13.7 update. It will also help connect users across regions, meaning if someone in Virginia was in contact with a Maryland resident who tested positive, they will also get a notification.
Those residents already using apps with contact tracing software need not worry; the new update is still compatible with the apps. The new iPhone update has been available since September 1 but users might need to wait for state officials to enable the exposure notifications to be able to use them.
See also: DC Residents Will Now Be Able To Use Their Phone To Travel On The Metro
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