Fact check: Has COVID-19 sensor been 'inserted' in every phone?

Origin

Several people have been forwarding messages on WhatsApp and other social media platforms claiming that a COVID-19 exposure sensor has been silently 'inserted' in every phone. The message claims that everyone was having phone disruptions recently due to the COVID-19 trackers which have been newly installed in people's phones. Here's what the message read - 

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In actuality, the message above is referencing to the COVID-19 contact tracing system that has been built with a joint effort from Apple and Google. The new system allows iPhones and Android devices to enable COVID-19 exposure notifications. This, in reality, does not translate that a tracker has been installed in every device in order to track a user's location or any other details. Various messages also claimed that the 'application' which has been secretly installed in every phone becomes functional once Bluetooth service is turned on. 

What are COVID-19 exposure settings?

COVID-19 exposure logging in iOS

COVID-19 notification settings in Android

The messages going viral on social media are circulating half-cooked information and do not provide a complete understanding of the matter. Indeed, a new service has been introduced on both iOS and Android device but they require a participating application to turn on the COVID-19 exposure setting. Various countries around the world have built participating apps for these settings to work on devices, but India is not a part of the bunch as of now. 

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Similarly, on iOS devices, the COVID-19 exposure logging is turned off by default, this means that no application has been silently 'inserted' any devices. In basic terms, Apple and Android have given their devices a basic framework that is required to track COVID-19 exposure for its users. As per reports, Apple and Google wish to provide COVID-19 related contact tracing without requiring a dedicated application. But there have been concrete developments about the same.

Google Trends Analysis

As the forwarded messages about a COVID-19 tracker being installed in devices started going viral, a number of users took to Google and searched for the same. This resulted in a surge in search results around topics like 'COVID 19 sensor on phones', 'COVID 19 sensor in Google' and 'COVID 19 exposure notification'. Check out Google Trends analysis below - 

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