Ridiculous App- false alerts?

[Pumpertrumper]

Sat talking to DB tonight and an alert pops up.
It was from the test and trace app and said something along the lines of ‘you have been exposed to Covid 19- something about isolation’ I’m sure it said this as I read it, said ‘ah shit’ to my DB and told him. Clicked on the notification and it disappeared. The app is showing nothing.

I’ve read about false notifications being sent, even the app itself says not to worry about these. But I’m 95% sure this notification said I HAD been exposed and should isolate. (I’ve literally only been to the supermarket so must have been there). But I have a teething baby and am exhausted and poorly so maybe I misread I don’t know.

Anyway, app now says nothing. Issue is DH is a Dr at the local hospital. He’s working with very vulnerable people tonight.

I’ve told him and he’s worried he should come home and get tested but there’s no one to ask! Can’t contact test and trace, 119 are no use and closed anyway. How can the app for Covid tracing think it’s ok to send out false messages and say you should just ignore them! WTF do we do now? Do we isolate?

I’ve been unwell with a virus for about 10 days already but was tested for Covid at the start and was negative.

Feels like a huge mess!

You said the only place you could have caught it would have been the supermarket. How would the app know you'd been at a supermarket? They don't need us to check in (unless using a cafe within the restaurant).

I’ve never checked in anywhere (havnt been anywhere with a QR code) so assumed it was just
Running in the background on my phone and knew where I had been.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-54389083

I thought the whole point of the app was it ran on Bluetooth and so could tell you if you'd been near someone who had tested positive.

Op, I'd ignore it if its literally disappeared.

I had one of these today. I'm ignoring it as there was nothing about isolating and I'm not showing symptoms. I don't know ANYONE who has tested positive.

The link explains it. You can ignore it.

Fab thanks all. I was freaking out last night but appears a false alarm x

Don’t have the app and never will.

I've received the false alert twice now. I think it's quite ridiculous (and unfair). Both times I've had a little panic before I've opened the app and seen nothing has changed.

I'm suffering from a bit of heightened anxiety at the moment anyway - false alarms are the last thing I need!

Until these sort of glitches are sorted out I’ve turned off contact tracing (not sure if I need Bluetooth off as well). I’ll scan the QR code if I have to (and actually have my phone with me).

Mine told me I had an alert for possible exposure last night and disappeared when I clicked! I figured out that if you switch off the Bluetooth, it gives you a notification that it's not scanning and you can access past alerts that way...

Anyway, the alert was apparently due to a "match" at 21.45 when I was ironing in the living room... so I think I'm okay. Although quite happy to avoid ironing if it's deemed a risky activity!

I've had it twice, DP once. It justs means you've been near someone at some point, but if it was long enough for concern you get a proper message to isolate in the app, these brief ones can be safely ignored.

Completely pointless to alert people unnecessarily like this. I will not be downloading it especially given the latest missing cases fiasco. Test and Trace is a disaster.

@NotAKaren
But things like cases not getting to human contact tracers make the app even more important.

@HarrietOh they shouldn’t be sending them in that case. I don’t care if I briefly walked past someone, I’m only bothered if I need to isolate and even then I don’t trust them to get it right.

@StatisticalSense no one is going to trust it if it’s sending out false alerts!

[quote StatisticalSense]@NotAKaren
But things like cases not getting to human contact tracers make the app even more important.[/quote]
Given the number of cases that were missed over the last week or so due to the excel spreadsheet disaster, that's ship has well and truly sailed. As I said before I have zero confidence in the system and I will not be told to isolate, potentially unnecessarily, due to an app.

I actually just received another false alert. Small panic about whether I would have to miss my hobby tonight - the one social event I still get to have. Fortunately the notification led nowhere.

It makes me so angry to think how stupid this is.