Strategic use of the internet

EngageMedia, an organisation with significant experience in working remotely, has some tips and tools for those now working from home because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Technology has become a crucial part of the COVID-19 response, and this has raised some serious questions: Can privacy and public health security go hand in hand? Is it enough to use safeguards such as transparency and the use of intrusive technology only when absolutely necessary?

Brazil's communications regulator Anatel has acknowledged that community networks are a viable option for Brazilians. This decision provides for both regulation for existing community networks and the creation of future networks. The question now is, what happens next?

While governments and health workers worldwide are focused on combating the COVID-19 pandemic, they are also busy fighting another related pandemic that cuts across all sectors of society: a massive “infodemic” equally as wide-reaching and harmful.

In these difficult and weird times, many people and organisations are adjusting to situations of remote working and working from home. Even for groups who are accustomed to online communications, the switch to full remote working may be a challenge.

The extent to which African countries are conducting technology-based disease surveillance is not fully known. While well intentioned, Covid-19 surveillance and data-based tracking interventions have been effected in haste, and with limited precedent and oversight mechanisms. 

COVID-19 is revealing the extent of the digital divide in Pakistan, and it has resulted in Pakistanis mobilizing on Twitter to demand affordable and accessible Internet services.

As governments around the world attempt to flatten the curve of coronavirus cases, authorities appear to be looking towards technology for support. Chatbots, online dashboards, and mobile caller tunes are some of the digital strategies put on display by officials to raise awareness around Covid-19.