Northern Ireland-specific contact tracing app ‘StopCOVID NI’ has been developed by the Department of Health. The app is now available to download from your app store.

Download the 'StopCOVID NI' app to help stop the spread of coronavirus.

• This free app from our health service will support contact tracing, help prevent another lockdown and save lives.

• It tells you automatically if you've been near another app user who tests positive. It can also let them know if you test positive.

• It never knows or shares your identity or location

You can download from:
Google Play Store - StopCOVID NI
Apple App Store - StopCOVID NI

If you use the app, you can:
• get an alert if you have been in close contact with an app user who tests positive for coronavirus

• get advice on what to do if you've been exposed to the virus

• add your test results if you test positive

• let the app alert others if you test positive

• invite others to take part

• get handy links for advice on symptoms and booking free tests

What does the StopCOVID NI app do?
• It supports contact tracing and helps protect as many people as possible.
• It uses Bluetooth technology to check if you've been in close contact with another app user.
• It tells you if you have been near someone who has tested positive, even if you don't know them.
• If you receive an alert, it will tell you to self-isolate for 14 days and show you where to get advice on symptoms and booking a test.
• If you test positive, it updates app users who have been in close contact with you.
• It only knows if you have been near another app-user, not your identity or location.

How does the app protect my privacy?
• The app does not collect your name, location or movements.

• Your records are collected anonymously and stored on your mobile phone.

• The app uses Bluetooth technology to exchange secure, anonymous records between app users who come into in close contact.

• It never identifies you to other app users and you can't access anyone else's information.

• If you test positive, you can choose to upload your records to anonymously alert your close contacts.

How do I download the app?
Download the app from your phone's app store.

This will be the Apple App Store for iPhones and the Google Play Store for most other phones. Search ‘StopCOVID NI’. You should see the app with its black and white HSC logo. Click ‘Install’ or ‘Get’.
Google Play Store - StopCOVID NI
Apple App Store - StopCOVID NI

The app will then be installed on your phone. Open the app and follow the guidance to set it up.

The app will then be installed on your phone. Open the app and follow the guidance to set it up. You will be asked to confirm you want to use the app, agree to the Ts & Cs, and allow the app to use your Bluetooth feature to send you notifications.

Can I use my app outside Northern Ireland?
The app will work anywhere that uses the same technology, such as the Republic of Ireland. It will operate in the same secure and anonymous way it does in Northern Ireland.

As more countries launch apps like this, we can help stop the virus spreading when we travel.

This also means that people using apps made for those countries can use them when travelling here.

Can I turn the app off?
It’s important the app is active as much as possible to help stop the spread of coronavirus.

If you need to disable it for any reason, you can do this by turning off your phone’s Bluetooth feature.

If you work somewhere that uses social distancing and added safety measures (Perspex screens and PPE), you can disable the app while working. The app doesn’t know you have extra protection from close contact in this scenario, so disabling it will avoid ‘false’ contact notifications.

Can I delete the app from my phone?
You can uninstall the app at any time. This will delete the data that the app has stored on your phone. The data that you have shared with other phones will also be deleted.

Stopping the spread of COVID-19
The app is one way of helping to stop the spread of COVID-19. There are other steps we should all be taking too.

Everyone should continue to:
• wash hands regularly
• cover coughs and sneezes
• practise social distancing
• follow the latest public health advice

This app will support our health service, help prevent another lockdown and save lives. Most people spreading the virus don't know they have it. So, the more people using the app, the more lives we save.

Let's all keep doing our bit to stop the spread of coronavirus.

Learn more at nidirect.gov.uk/coronavirus