The Swiss Covid app has been available to users for a year now

The Swiss Covid app recorded its 1.19 millionth download two days after its release - after June 27, 2021 - according to the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) - currently 3.18 million people have installed the app. It was the most downloaded app in Switzerland in 2020. A rapid increase was also observed in user numbers. Up to two million people actively use the Swiss Covid app - currently there are 1.7 million.

From an epidemiological point of view, according to the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH), it was important in the first phase to find out whether the number of calls received by the Infoline after warnings through the app correlated with the number of cases, i.e. whether enough people were warned by the app. Based on this research, the thresholds used to estimate distance were adjusted to increase effectiveness.

Number of Covid codes entered at 83,117

As early as fall 2020, it was possible to show on the basis of the evaluation of medical notification forms that symptom-free persons had themselves tested after an app warning and received a positive result. By isolating these positively tested persons, chains of infection were interrupted at an early stage. Due to high data protection requirements, it is not possible to collect data on how many individuals received a warning. However, the number of covid codes entered into the app is known: currently, 83,117 covid codes have been entered, which in turn have triggered warnings for other users.

Work is currently underway to expand the Swiss Covid app, which should make it possible to inform even more people anonymously and in an uncomplicated way about a risk of infection. According to the FOPH, notifications from the Swiss Covid app are quick and are intended to motivate people to get tested for the coronavirus.

Source: Federal Office of Public Health