The government approved the use of surveillance through cell phones to track Corona patients

The government (Sunday) approved the use of surveillance through cell phones to fight Corona. According to officials of the Justice Ministry, according to the approved outline, both the paths of the verified patients' paths through their cellular devices will also be reviewed and an attempt will be made to locate people who were around and possibly infected.
In the first circle, to be conducted by the police, patients will be asked to confirm their cellular examination to check where they were - instead of the questioning conducted today by a medical staff member. In some circumstances, cellular screening can be done without the patient's consent, using technological means. The examination, even without the patient's consent, will be done without a court order.
In the second circle, the ISA will enter the picture and make a "reverse" stay. In other words, instead of checking a known patient's path, people who are close to the patient will try to locate cellular sites. The information will be sent to the Ministry of Health, which will send a message to those people who need to go into isolation.
The goal is to reduce the amount of time people who live next to Corona patient do not know that they need to go into isolation, and may infect more people - which can save lives. Alongside this, the legal official said, a principled decision was made to minimize the violation of privacy as far as possible.
According to sources in the Justice Ministry, the move is justified by a section in the ISA law that allows the service not only to be used for terrorist war purposes, but also "for activity in another area decided by the government, with the approval of the Knesset Service Affairs Committee, which is designed to preserve and promote vital national security interests. The state. "
According to the work procedure that is being formulated in the Ministry of Justice with the Shin Bet and the police, the information obtained through training will be transferred to the Ministry of Health and will not be kept by the Shin Bet. Only those with specific positions in the Ministry of Health will be authorized to review the information, and it will be defined that any use of the information other than for the purposes of warning those persons will be a criminal offense. The Ministry of Health also wanted to use surveillance tools for the purpose of enforcing isolation - but the Ministry of Justice refused.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday that the means used in Israel have already been tried in Taiwan and helped curb the virus there. However, legal officials have expressed concern that the move would violate the right to privacy. The prime minister was not satisfied with the original wording of the decision and sought to impose many restrictions on reducing the scope of the information, the extent of its exposure and ensuring that this information would not make any use of it in combating the corona epidemic.
Meanwhile, it was reported that the number of infections continues to rise and there are now 213 infections of the Corona virus. According to the Health Ministry, the state of 195 is mildly defined, 12 in the middle condition, two in the severe condition, and four recovered and released into their home. Among the patients is a department manager at Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv.
One of the Corona virus patients in the center of the country is working at the Ministry of Health's Central Laboratory of Viruses. The worker's condition is easy and she is in isolation. The Health Ministry has announced that they are working on creating alternatives for testing through teams from other labs. A personal notice will be provided for all personal contacts upon completion of the epidemiological investigation updated.
A ward manager at Ichilov Hospital developed mild Corona symptoms, found positive and was placed in isolation. The entire ward went into isolation as did about 30 patients. We are now examining who the patients have been over the past two weeks as well as the staff. She said if she had not been a health care worker she would not have been tested and from the moment she developed the symptoms she would not be in contact with patients.
Mikhailov said a hospital ward was suffering from minimal symptoms, and immediately went into isolation and was examined. The test results confirmed that it was positive for Corona. Subsequent to an epidemiologic investigation for all patients in the ward, a test was taken, and the patients who were exposed and released were located. The contacted staff are in isolation from the moment the answer is received.
After assessing the situation with all the relevant corona virus professionals and in coordination with the Attorney General and the Chief Justice, Justice Minister Amir Ohana extended the state of emergency in the courts, labor courts and bureaus until March 22, 2020. The decision to expand the types of matters to be discussed. Balances the right of access to the courts, and the need for the Health Ministry's guidelines to maintain the health and well-being of the public and the courts, employees and judges. Thus, Prime Minister Netanyahu's trial was postponed. His judges decided the trial would be postponed for May.
The Prison Service (IPS) continues its activities to prevent the penetration of the Corona virus into the prison facilities and to maintain the health of the prisoners and the staff. Further to the policy level and to approve emergency regulations approved by the government today and to reduce as many as possible to prisons, In addition, detention consultations with attorneys will generally take place via telephone calls, and prisoners' employment has been adjusted to the Ministry of Health's restrictions as well as exits to the public outpatient facilities and prisons.
The IPS is also preparing to clean up public areas outside and inside the detention centers. Each staff member and citizen who is required to enter a prison is examined at the entrance to the facility. Additional equipment will be distributed to be further disinfected and cleaned of the cells and divisions, as well as regular information for incarcerated people through multiple language videos, informational signage and other advocacy materials that emphasize the obligation to maintain hygiene. And some prisons.