Contact tracing apps alone may be ineffective to reduce Covid-19 spread: Study

Contact tracing apps are unlikely to contain the spread of Covid-19 without proper public health control measures such as physical distancing and closure of indoor spaces, according to a review of studies.

The systematic review, published in the journal Lancet Digital Health on Thursday, shows that evidence around the effectiveness of automated contact tracing systems is currently very limited.

The research suggests that large-scale manual contact tracing alongside other public health control measures — such as physical distancing and closure of indoor spaces such as pubs — is likely to be required in conjunction with automated approaches.