With close to 10,000 reported infections and more than 150 deaths, South Korea is home to one of the largest outbreaks of coronavirus outside China, the US, Italy, and Spain.
As a result, the government has enforced a number of strict measures to curb the spread, including sending thousands of people into mandatory quarantine.
From April 1, everyone arriving in South Korea from overseas must undergo a 14-day quarantine upon arrival.
Previously, only people arriving from the United States have had to spend two weeks in quarantine and those showing symptoms, like fever, are required to be tested for the coronavirus.
To help the authorities monitor these people and ensure that they don't leave their homes, the country's Ministry of the Interior and Safety developed a phone app where those in quarantine can report the status of their health twice daily.
The app also uses GPS to keep track of their location to ensure they are not breaking the quarantine rules.
Park Jong-hyun, a spokesperson from the Central Disaster Relief Headquarters, told a press gathering on Monday that 81 percent of people who entered South Korea from abroad had installed the app since its launch, while the remaining 19 percent did not install the app because they are children without a smartphone, or people using older phones.
The country has been widely praised for its management of the outbreak and spread of coronavirus, with the focus largely on the country's enormous virus testing program.
No app, no entry
Without the self-quarantine app, it is impossible to enter South Korea.
Under the new regulations, if a person doesn’t have a suitable mobile phone or they can’t install the app on their old phone, the government in their local area will follow-up on them and manage their movement.
Local governments have appointed dedicated officials to track the movements of those in self-quarantine through a geographic information system (GIS), which reveals deeper insights into a person’s movements, such as patterns and relationships.
Seoul's Gangnam district recently announced it would further tighten checks on people in quarantine who didn’t install the app, including monitoring health by phonecalls at least four times a day and making sudden visits at least two times a day.
The penalty for failing to comply to self-quarantine measures can be one year in prison or a fine of 10 million won (A$13,400).
Park Jong-hyun said the app was created “in preparation” for the measures of self-quarantine for all inbound passengers.
"Without this app, local government officials should manage the quarantined people one-on-one, but if they use the app, one official can manage 10 or 20 or 30 people,” he said.
Inside the app?
When the app is first installed, a user will be required to enter personal information such as name and residential address.
The app contains information pages for the health and contact details for a designated government official.
Once installed, people are required to report their health condition daily at both 10am and 3pm, in order to check for a fever, cough, sore throat and breathing difficulties.
If details are not updated, a designated official will contact the person directly.
The GPS-based app also monitors the location of the person in quarantine, and officials will be notified if they leave their residences.
'Strong punishment'
Addressing claims of errors in the GPS system, Mr Park said: "In some cases, those who leave the quarantine area without permission claim to make errors in the app. In this case, such claims do not materialise because we are checking all their movements through CCTV."
There are also reports that people in self-quarantine have left their phones at home, which makes it difficult to track their whereabouts.
"If you leave your mobile phone at home, there is no other way to control it other than strong punishment. The only way is to punish them strongly and cut off living support payments," Mr Park said.
To curb this issue, text messages have been sent stressing that officials might be sent to residences if the GPS function is switched off.
COVID-19 and state-of-the-art technology
South Korea is not the only country fighting the spread of COVID-19 using technology.
In Taiwan, are installed at the homes of people in self-quarantine, where police are dispatched should they leave.
Hong Kong requires all inbound visitors to wear a wristband for tracking purposes.
A team at the University of South Australia is designing a to detect virus symptoms such as fever and coughing from a distance.
People in Australia must stay at least 1.5 metres away from others and gatherings are limited to two people unless you are with your family or household.
If you believe you may have contracted the virus, call your doctor (don’t visit) or contact the national Coronavirus Health Information Hotline on 1800 020 080. If you are struggling to breathe or experiencing a medical emergency, call 000.
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