The American giant Google recently announced that it has shared its data in more than a hundred countries. This sharing is mainly directed towards the authorities responsible for public health. The goal? Follow the evolution of the pandemic but also the effectiveness of the containment by observing the evolution of the frequentation of the places.
Not long ago, we wondered if we really had to track mobiles in order to fight the Covid-19 epidemic. Then, no less than eight European operators said they were ready to share their geolocation data. However,the anonymity of the data will be guaranteed , as provided for in the European Regulation on the protection of personal data (GDPR).
In a press release published on April 3, 2020, Google indicated that it wanted to participate in this effort. However, the giant says it has already shared billions of Android user data through a platform called COVID-19 Community Mobility Reports. Specifically, it is data from its mobile operating system. These were aggregated via Google Maps and anonymized before being communicated on the platform. On the latter the data of 131 countries are available in PDF files.
The report on France (PDF in English / 12 pages) mentions changes in terms of people's mobility . Since the start of confinement in our country, attendance has dropped by 88% at the level of places of commerce and leisure. In addition, this fall is -87% in the case of train, metro and bus stations, -82% for public parks and -72% for grocery stores and pharmacies. Workplaces are also affected, with a drop of "only" 56%. The data mentioned relates to France in general, but the report also provides the point region by region.
In the report, Google addresses both users and public health officials. This includes understanding how social distancing recommendations are applied by the people. Google recalls in passing that this type of report should not be used in the context of medical diagnosis or treatment or advice on personal travel between urban and rural areas. Finally, Google has indicated that after the pandemic, these activities will end and that the platform will be closed.
