It sits on your wrist, just as a wristwatch would. And in a moment when the world fears infections more than almost anything, it knows exactly where you are.
Since late March, residents returning to Hong Kong have been required to undergo a two-week quarantine at home, in a hotel or at a government facility as part of stepped-up efforts to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
To ensure people don’t flout quarantine, the semi-autonomous Chinese city issued mandatory wristbands to all arrivals, to be worn for the entirety of the two-week period.
Those required to go through the two-week quarantine are unable to leave their homes and must rely on food or grocery delivery for meals. Government officers also conduct random checks on their homes to make sure they have not broken quarantine.
That’s what happened to Zen Soo, a Hong Kong-based technology writer for The Associated Press.
For two weeks, she was confined to her apartment, waiting out a quarantine designed to ensure she didn’t have COVID-19. The wristband was her constant companion. Early versions were glitchy, and the government admitted that only a third of them worked. Later ones include a Bluetooth-enabled version that connects to the user’s smartphone to monitor movements. – READ MORE
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