Police in Australia co-opted COVID-19 apps to fight crime

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Biker boss Nick Martin’s murder at a speedway in Perth, Australia, left police a trove of evidence that led them to the culprit: a thrill-seeker turned gun-for-hire. But they wanted more.

The coronavirus pandemic provided it in the form of an electronic dragnet: QR code check-in data from contact tracing apps of 2,439 fans who attended the December 2020 race. A government order requiring people to provide contact tracing information in case of a COVID-19 outbreak meant that anyone who checked in at the raceway that day left their name, phone number and arrival time through the SafeWA COVID-19 app or on paper. Police issued an “order to produce” the information to the state Health Department two days after Martin was shot and killed.

Police accessed the data despite Western Australia Premier Mark McGowan’s promise that the data would only be accessible to contact tracing personnel.

“They’ve breached the trust of the West Australian public and they have let everybody down,” Mia Davies, leader of the state’s opposition National Party, said in a written statement blaming the government for not legislating safeguards from the start.

Western Australia police didn’t respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press.

Unable to negotiate a solution with police, McGowan’s government ultimately passed laws in June 2021 that banned law enforcement from accessing such QR data. Multiple other Australian states and territories also introduced laws to prevent police from accessing contact tracing data.

Some critics blame Australia’s lacking privacy regulations for the way police have leveraged information collected for a health emergency. Comparable countries – including New Zealand and the United Kingdom – have QR check-ins that don’t collect and...