Traveling Soon? You Need to Install This Contact-Tracing App First

Use of the app will be mandatory beginning November 28.
by Ina Louise Manto | November 13, 2020

More Filipinos will be traveling soon as local airports reopen, travel restriction ease, and non-essential travel for leisure is allowed again. As part of the effort to contain COVID-19, the government has launched the contract-tracing app Traze for easy identification of travelers who may have had contact with a COVID-positive patient.

Traze is currently on a soft launch and is being used by all departing and arriving passengers in four international airports across the country: Ninoy International Airport (NAIA), Clark International Airport (CRK), Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIAA), and Davao International Airport (DIA).

According to the Department of Transportation, the use of the app will be mandatory starting November 28.

What is Traze?

Traze is a nationwide and unified contact-tracing app co-developed by the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) and Cosmotech Philippines Inc. It uses QR code scanning to speed up the tracing process done by agencies under DOTr’s Aviation and Airport sector such as the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP). The manual contact tracing process that usually takes several days can now be done in just a few minutes.

Though Traze is only used in airports now, the government is looking into using the app nationwide in the future. It can also be used in establishments, transportation, barangays, and delivery crew.

The app is compliant with Republic Act (RA) 1017 or the Data Privacy Act. It also allows anonymous registration by users where the submission of personal information is optional.

GPS or Bluetooth aren’t required to use the app. It also works offline and can be used even with slow data or WiFi connection.

How does it work?

Two Traze codes are provided per user. One directs to the registered user and the other is used to “Traze” QR codes of establishments, transportation, hospitals, barangays, and other users. The app also provides a history of where you’ve scanned your code. Travel  history is cleared every 30 days.

If a registered user comes in contact with an identified COVID-19 positive patient, they will receive a notification from the app. This is to help them take precautionary measures such as self-isolation and tests.

How do you register?

Traze can be downloaded via the Google Play Store for Android and Apple App Store for iOs users, under the name “Traze Contact Tracing”. For Apple users, the app only works on units using iOS 13 and up.

Open the app and click register as “individual” and fill out the necessary information needed, and activate your account. Users can use Traze without data of WiFi after a successful registration.

To register other users such as establishments and transportation, you may refer to these videos.

I don’t have a phone, how do I sign up?

Passengers who don’t have mobile phones can easily sign up for their unique QR code via the Malasakit Helpdesk in airports. Likewise, family members can sign up for them.

What if the passenger can’t download the app?

For passengers coming from overseas, you might encounter an “app not available in my country” error message. If you’re an Android user, you may download the APK file here. For iOS users, you may need to download a VPN application and set the country to the Philippines.

As of writing, the Philippines currently has over 400,000 coronavirus cases, with over 362,000 recoveries and 7,721 deaths.

For more information and updates about Traze,  visit their official website or follow their Facebook page.