Thailand Wins: Notify gov’t everywhere you go with new COVID tracking app

Because it’s never too soon to declare “mission accomplished,” a new app will put Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha’s favorite refrain when addressing  the nation –  “Thailand will win!” – into your hand while tracking every place you go.

Polawat Witoonkolchit of the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society said Thursday at the Government House that the COVID-19 task force has developed a smartphone app called Thai Chana (“Thailand Wins”) to track people’s movements – solely for public health purposes, of course.

The application will launch tomorrow along with further details.

Polawat explained that it will require businesses such as restaurants, barber shops and stores to register online and post a QR code for customers to scan with their smartphones.

Customers would use the app to check in and out of venues, Polawat said. Anyone who has visited a venue where they might have been at risk will get a notification that they should be tested for COVID-19. 

Addressing privacy concerns, Polawat said registration would only require people’s phone numbers, which may provide little relief given that all SIM card owners are already registered with the government. Don’t worry, he said, all personal information will be kept secret by the authorities.

“This is the relaxation for the new normal, and all of us are responsible for it,” Polawat said. “Initially, it might have some obstacles, but if we all cooperate, Thailand will definitely win.”

It was not said whether an effort would be made to require its use by all members of the public.

Source - Coconuts / The Thaiger

Phones with outdated operating systems to lose mobile-banking access

The Bank of Thailand (BOT) has stepped up measures to ensure mobile-banking security, assistant governor Siritida Panomwon Na Ayudhya said on Friday (December 20).

The central bank has issued guiding principles for mobile-banking security, which will not allow obsolete operating systems of smartphones to access banking services.She said currently mobile banking has grown rapidly. 

 

There are about 55 million accounts registered to use mobile banking in the first nine months of this year, up from 41 million accounts last year, while financial transactions reached 3.2 billion items via mobile banking, up from 2.7 billion last year.

 

Mobile phones have become a more-important tool for financial transactions, she said.

 

However, risks stemming from malwares or fake applications also posed a threat to the system, she warned. Therefore, the central bank will require financial institutions to be more careful about the security of the system.

 

Banks will have to inform customers that they cannot use mobile phones with obsolete operating systems, such as Android software prior to version 4, and iOS of iPhone prior to version 8. 

 

These outdated operating systems are vulnerable to cyber-attacks.

 

“Mobile phones run by an obsolete operating system would have limited access to mobile-banking services or could be totally banned in the future; mobile devices that have been jailbroken or rooted would also be prohibited,” she said. 

 

The iOS latest operating version is 13.3. Mobile phones run by the obsolete Android system is less than one per cent. An estimated 10,000 mobile phones have been jail-broken and currently are used to access banking services.

 

Banks would also be required to have more complicated settings for PIN codes and passwords in order to reduce the risk of being hacked.

 

The central bank would allow banks four months to make the necessary changes before the guiding principles are enforced in May next year, she added.

Source - TheNation