FAQs

First of all it is important to say that both apps can be used simultaneously on the same smartphone without any problems. However, the Zone Check app offers additional protection, among other things due to the numerous additional features (see Toolkit), and thus promises a higher spread among employees in one company and the possibility of data-supported crisis management. Zone Check is compatible with all contact tracing apps that rely on the DP3T standard, but is not yet compatible with the RKI app. We are committed to creating a landscape of compatible apps in the medium term that will optimize the overall coverage.

If your employer has purchased a license for the Zone Check app, you can download the app under the individual download link for your company. If your company does not yet have a license for Zone Check, we are happy to advise you here.

The Zone Check app runs on all mobile devices equipped with the mobile operating systems iOS12, Android 5.1 (SDK 22) or more recent versions. Apart from the Bluetooth capability, there are no other technical requirements for using the app. Thus Zone Check runs on more smartphone models than the RKI app and on almost all smartphones which are in use today. In addition, we are currently developing the possibility to anonymously record contacts even without a smartphone using certain "wearables". In this way, infection-relevant contacts can be recorded decentrally even by people without smartphones or in company areas where smartphones are prohibited.

The Zone Check App is already available in the language options English, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Chinese (/Mandarin). More language options will be available soon.

In the home screen you can activate or deactivate the contact scanner at any time. If the contact scanner is activated, it will work even if the app is only open in the background. We recommend that you leave the contact scanner generally activated so that all potentially infection-relevant contacts can be recorded by your smartphone.

No, the contact tracing function records contacts with other users even without Internet connection. However, the smartphone must be connected to the Internet in order to communicate its own infection message to the back end or to receive warnings itself if a person with whom an infection-relevant contact has been registered in the last 14 days reports as COVID-19 infected.

Yes, once installed, the app works anywhere in the world. The advantage is that companies can have their own global ecosystem and thus secure their independence. In addition, all users of Zone Check can use contact tracing among each other, regardless of their company.

Zone Check is fully compliant with the laws on the protection of personal data in Germany and the European Union. The main reason for this is that users remain completely anonymous and data is stored decentrally on the smartphones. Only the users' smartphones have knowledge of the contact history - and even this local contact history is completely anonymized, without any personal information being associated with it. The server only receives and sends anonymous IDs of people who have registered as COVID-19 positive.

In order for the core functionality of the app - anonymous Bluetooth LE Contact Tracing - to work, you have to activate the contact scanner in the home screen. If it is not activated, the central function of the app will not work. The authorization for further data (e.g. of location data) are offers for you to be able to access additional useful features (like location specific information). However, all data will be used completely anonymously and stored decentrally (unless you explicitly release them for anonymous use for research purposes, for example).

The IDs of infected persons from the last 14 days are kept on the central server - older data is automatically deleted. At regular intervals, the app contacts the central server and asks for all IDs that have been added to the database since the last contact between the app and the server. These IDs are transmitted to the app via a secure HTTPS connection. The app then compares these IDs with the IDs recorded in the internal contact log and, in case of a match, alerts the user(s) with a contact alert.

No, in general your data is not stored centrally on your smartphone, but only locally. However, for the functionality of the app it is necessary that you update your health status in case of an infection with COVID-19 and explicitly allow the transfer of your anonymous User-IDs of the last 14 days to the backend. You also have the option to make your location data available for research purposes - but this option also requires your explicit consent. Also in this case, your data will only be passed on completely anonymously and only evaluated in aggregated form.

Yes, you can always delete the location data shared with the backend in the home screen.

We support the operating systems Apple iOS and Google Android. As long as the phones have Bluetooth Low Energy capabilities, the system will work. While it is true that every single smartphone on the market has slightly different Bluetooth Low Energy coverage (which is also affected by smartphone housings), this does not affect the compatibility of the system.

Please address your questions about technical difficulties and problems to the contact person at your company. If they cannot help you, the contact person(s) will contact our IT support.

The monitoring of users by Zone Check is technically impossible and contradicts our values.