Contact tracing forever

Strange times. Some obvious conspiracy theories thrown up by the coronavirus debacle are clearly plausible, especially those relating to the creepy imposition of a police state.

One obvious possibility thrown up by the UK coronavirus shambles is how automated centralised contact tracing could become permanent. The justification is not difficult to foresee because mild pandemics such as influenza have always been a regular part of life. There is no need to be a fly on the establishment wall –

Lessons learned, why not do something about it, we have the technology, we know it makes sense…

The justifications are already in place - tick. Neither is it difficult to foresee the coronavirus pandemic being used as evidence that something even worse could descend on us without warning - tick. Next time think of the children – tick.

Coronavirus contact tracing may be patchy and glitchy at the moment but that misses the point. It can be made to work well enough technically and after the pandemic nonsense runs out of steam it could be switched on again. Eventually it could be encouraged for almost any form of public activity from going to the pub or café to public transport to shopping. To begin with it need not be mandatory, merely accepted as sensible by a sufficiently large number of people.

We already know that public acceptance is not likely to be a major hurdle if virtue signalling and personal safety are stirred into the narrative. About a third of the adult population may be sufficient to push it further even if another third opposes it and another third is in the don’t know camp. Especially if the media push it from health angles.

It’s another plausible conspiracy theory where it is so easy to see how sinister beginnings will not be seen as sinister by a substantial section of the population. The narrative will always include prominent references to privacy safeguards. Yet safeguards or not, some will accept it anyway and that could easily be enough for any government to quietly dispense with privacy at some point.