S. Korea develops GPS-based app to monitor those in obligatory self-quarantine

SEOUL -- In an effort to contain a coronavirus epidemic, the South Korean government has developed a dedicated app to monitor those who were ordered to go into obligatory self-quarantine for two weeks. The app utilizes a GPS function to make the alarm sound if users violate guidelines.

From March 7, the app will be used in Daegu, the epicenter of South Korea's COVID-19 epidemic, and North Gyeongsang Province. Some 27,700 people were put into self-quarantine, but a series of violations have been reported, fanning a public health scare. The app is designed to stop those in self-quarantine deviating from designated locations.

"We've looked for ways to make self-quarantine a little more efficient and developed an app," Park Jong-hyun, head of the PR management team at the government anti-epidemic center, told a regular press briefing on Wednesday. "We hope self-quarantine will become more efficient if the app is actively used."

The app will be upgraded to include a self-diagnosis function to check for symptoms such as coughing, sore throat and fever, Park said. As of Wednesday, the total number of coronavirus infections stood at more than 5,300, including 4,780 in Daegu and its adjacent province. The virus has killed 33 people.