Coronavirus: Hong Kong business operators express concerns over forcing customers to use contact-tracing app
- At least two ‘substitutes’ for ‘Leave Home Safe’ app are already on the market to help patrons skip the recording procedures
- ‘If diners don’t use it, how could a restaurant waiter, or even operator, force them to do so?’ asks restaurateur Simon Wong
At least two “substitutes” for the app were already found on online discussion forums on Thursday. Some Hongkongers have developed interfaces that look exactly like the one created by the government, so patrons can skip the recording procedures by screencapping and showing a fake page.
But health authorities also forced at least 14 types of businesses to either require patrons to scan the “Leave Home Safe” app or leave their personal details as prerequisites for reopening.
Failure to comply with the rules could lead to a suspension of business for three to 14 days, on top of existing penalties. Restaurants would also lose the privilege to stay open later.
The app – which has been downloaded 55,000 times and covers some 70,000 public and private venues across the city – has so far been used by patrons voluntarily. When users of the app enter a venue, they have to scan a specific QR code displayed on the premises. When exiting the venue, they have to press “leave” on the app.