Centre softens on use of Aarogya Setu app
Home ministry downgrades the app from a must-have to just recommended
In a major move, the Union home ministry has diluted the conditions regarding the use of Aarogya Setu during the lockdown.
According to the latest guidelines released on Sunday evening, employers should ensure the installation of the app on a “best effort” basis on “compatible phones” owned by their employees.
The new guideline is in direct contrast with the one released on May 1, which had mandated the use of the app by all employees of private and government organisations.
The new guidelines further state that district authorities “may” advise individuals to install the app, once again making the app voluntary.
The Aarogya Setu app has been engulfed in controversy ever since its release in April. It has been criticised for excessive data collection, unclear privacy and data retention policies and its closed source nature, among others. Although activists have hailed the new guidelines, they admit that this is only a small victory. The app is still mandatory for people boarding flights or trains in the country. Many companies such as Zomato, Flipkart, Urban Company require the app to be downloaded on the phones of their delivery partners and executives. Employees of public sector units companies such as BSNL too need to have the app installed on their phones.
Apar Gupta, executive director of the Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF), said this was only an incremental victory. “But it is still a significant one. By changing it from ‘mandatory’ to ‘best effort’, there is a level of discretion wrested with the employer now,” he said.
He noted that it would require a large effort given that there are already existing guidelines regarding the app’s use, wh-ere mandatory nature still stands, such as air and train travel. “However, with the new order, we can work towards harmonisation of the implementation, thereby making the app fully voluntary,” he said.
Activists have said that the mandatory-voluntary debate is only part of the problem since original concerns about the app are still valid.