1 Million Users Have Signed Up For Washington's Coronavirus App

OLYMPIA, WA — In just four days, more than one million people have signed up for WA Notify, the state's new coronavirus exposure tracking program.

Gov. Jay Inslee unveiled the app on Monday, touting it as an important tool that could help contain the spread of the virus.

"Secure, private and anonymous exposure notification technology is an important tool for Washington," Inslee said in a statement. "We've deployed WA Notify in 29 languages so as many Washington residents as possible can protect themselves, their loved ones and their communities. I encourage everyone to start using WA Notify today so we can continue to work together to contain the virus."

Once activated, the app interfaces with other phones that also have it installed, trading codes over Bluetooth that are randomized to maintain anonymity. If one user later tests positive for the coronavirus, the program then notifies every other user who was near the infected patient during their exposure period.

The program is voluntary and organizers have repeatedly stressed that it is anonymous, and does not track a user's personal information or where they have been going.

"This is a voluntary system, no one has to do this. It's your choice whether to enable it or download it on your phone, but obviously the more people who take advantage of this, the more who will know whether they've potentially been exposed to COVID-19," said Inslee at a conference Monday.

Now, just days later and 19 percent of all Washington adults have signed up to use the program on their phone. State health leaders say, that's great news because the more people sign up, the easier it will be to track COVID-19 exposures.

“Opting into exposure notification is something almost every Washington resident with a smartphone can do to help stop the spread of COVID-19, so we are gratified to see so many people adopting it quickly,” said Washington Secretary of Health John Wiesman. “If you haven’t activated WA Notify yet, please consider doing so. Studies from Oxford University and Stanford show that the more people who use a tool like WA Notify, the more effectively it will protect our communities.”

WA Notify is available in 29 languages. To activate the program, iPhone users just need to enable it in their settings panel. Android owners can download the program for free from the Google Play Store. Once signed up, users are free to opt out of the program at any time.

Learn more about the program, or find more detailed installation instructions from the Washington State Department of Health.