The NHS Covid-19 App has been updated to fix alerts suggesting exposure to coronavirus that then disappear.
Users have said the notifications appeared on their phone, but then disappeared when they opened the app.
Many suggested the alerts were worrying and caused confusion over whether they had been exposed and needed to isolate or get a test.
But the messages were caused by default privacy notifications from Apple and Google, which provide the technology the app is built on.
The messages are designed to alert users that their app is sharing anonymous contact-tracing information with another app.
The messages will still appear following the update, but will now be followed by a message from the government telling users to ignore them.
A Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) spokesperson confirmed app users “only need to self-isolate if they get a notification directly from the app advising them to do so”.
Official notifications from the app won’t disappear when you click on them and will provide appropriate advice within the app, DHSC confirmed. Important messages will always be visible within the app, even if a user misses the original notification.
An update on the App Store said the app had been fixed for “better notification for potential exposures”.
The app, launched in England and Wales on 24 September, uses Bluetooth to track time and distances between smartphone devices. Exposure notifications are shared between devices that have recently been in contact.
If a user comes into close contact with someone who later tests positive for the virus and needs to self-isolate, the app will send a message stating it has “detected that you have been in contact with someone who has coronavirus. Please stay at home and self-isolate to keep yourself and others safe”.
The technology behind the app is based on Apple and Google’s decentralised model, which has consistently been hailed more privacy-centric as it only sends exposure notification alerts between devices.
The system generates a random ID for an individual’s device, which can be exchanged between devices via Bluetooth, not GPS. These unique random IDs regenerate frequently to add an extra layer of security and preserve anonymity.
Disclaimer: Digital Health is a news site and has no association with the development of the NHS Covid-19 app
20 October 2020 @ 07:47
I had this message this morning too.
20 October 2020 @ 07:59
Me too – timed at 00.25 this morning- it obviously isn’t sorted
20 October 2020 @ 07:39
I had this alert this morning when I got up, very worrying to get a message like this especially when it’s a glitch, you need to sort this problem out, anyone with anxiety issues this could top them over the edge, we have enough to worry about, without having to worry if our track and trace is working properly please sort this out.
20 October 2020 @ 02:58
Omg I thought this was just me and my phone! Glad I found this thread. Also yes it definitely is not fixed as I just had two notifications and again disappeared when I tried to open it and read it. Useless!
20 October 2020 @ 05:55
I awoke to an alert on my phone this morning then it disappeared after I read it. It also took me 40 mins to find that it is an error on the app. Very alarming
20 October 2020 @ 06:43
I have had the same thing this morning. Can we get this fixed. I’ve just spent the last 40 mins attempting to figure out if I should go to work or stay at home… confusing
19 October 2020 @ 23:42
Same here, just had one even now its supposed to be fixed. It flashed up that fast, how are you supposed to be confident that you read it correctly 😠
19 October 2020 @ 23:53
I had the same about 3 hours ago, it’s taken a couple of hours of research to find this site to suggest it’s a glitch with the app that was going to be the best in the world. Very worrying couple of hours at to top it, it’s my birthday today… Great end to the day. Thank you for such a duff app. Get it fixed
20 October 2020 @ 08:13
I had this last Wednesday evening then again early hours this morning.
When happened last week I had a panic seeing it clicking onto the app for nothing to show up.. I thought maybe my Brain was playing tricks and I re read it as surely there would have been info on the app. Anywhoo, waking up this morn to it again I know now I was seeing things lol but same thing happened go onto app nothing comes up. Google search and its led me to here. Not impressed at all with this.
19 October 2020 @ 22:10
Its just happen to me and last week
19 October 2020 @ 21:47
Just had two messages disappear that led me hear. It looks like the £7K a day consultants aren’t being paid quite enough to provide a decent app. Please UK Goverment pay them at least £10K to £20k a day so we can have an app we can rely upon. Money for old rope. Get it bloody sorted.
19 October 2020 @ 20:44
Just happened to me!
19 October 2020 @ 21:10
Me too!!
19 October 2020 @ 21:14
Me too. Never had a problem before and now I’ve got on of the notifications that disapper!
19 October 2020 @ 20:40
Just happened to me very alarming since I work in the nhs
19 October 2020 @ 16:45
And stop saying it’s a privacy notice from apple and google to inform people of contact sharing data.. because it really isn’t. Otherwise it definitely wouldn’t say ‘you have been (or potentially been) in contact with someone who has COVID-19’ it would say: ‘your app shares this type of information with others’ so what on earth are you talking about. Plus it should have been fixed right??!. Just accept the failure so we can move on to a real strategy, rather than something that a handful of people with the right smartphone updates will download to be misinformed.
19 October 2020 @ 17:05
Same thing just happened to me. How am I meant to know what to do?
19 October 2020 @ 17:07
Just happened to me to! I guess there was a collective f up here
19 October 2020 @ 19:14
Happened to me today also. On my NHS work mobile. It was very alarming!!!!!!
19 October 2020 @ 18:01
Same
19 October 2020 @ 19:19
Just had the same two half messages again!
19 October 2020 @ 20:43
Happened to me too?!
Where would the message be in the app? Do I have to isolate just in case or do I ignore it?
Totally ridiculous and scared the pants off me!
19 October 2020 @ 20:52
This just happened to me too! But when I open the app I can’t see anything?!
19 October 2020 @ 16:33
The entire British government can’t make a simple informative app without all this rubbish? Absolutely ridiculous, I’m not against them or anything but my scrabble app works fine, so it’s quite concerning. I received a notification saying I had come into contact, which disappeared.. also if some people are advised this but ‘not to do anything’ that is extremely strange. I genuinely can’t deal with this stupidity, i was in contact with people who had confirmed Covid-19 and nothing from the app! I’m definitely deleting it and everyone else should too so that they can’t keep saying the trollop about it being effective.
19 October 2020 @ 16:30
Hi everyone,
Reading through your comments I can see that quite a few of you are still receiving notifications. That’s just Apple and Google’s privacy policy letting you know that the app is sharing contact-tracing data.
If you have been exposed and need to self-isolate you will get a message that won’t disappear and will still be available in the app – that is the message from NHS Test and Trace.
If you don’t think your app has updated you can check to see if updates are available in your app store. You should be able to update it that way.
Hope that’s helpful.
19 October 2020 @ 20:03
I assume you are on the team developing this App and in some position of authority to make the statements you just have?
Instead of coming up with a lame excuse, try fixing it!!!
19 October 2020 @ 20:49
It doesn’t say anything about sharing data! It says you’ve potentially come in to contact with someone with COVID-19…
You click on it and nothing! Where would the message be? It’s really worrying to get a message like that and more worrying when it disappears and there’s no guidance.
19 October 2020 @ 16:10
Exactly same happened to me. I only caught the words Don’t Worry [which makes the opposite happen] then when I clicked on it, it vanished. I am a supply teacher. I need to know or I could be infecting classes of children. Not good enough. Try harder.
19 October 2020 @ 15:50
I’ve had the message twice in 24 hours, it disappears when you click on it. It’s very scary. I’m not interested in the technical excuses for it, stop it! These messages make me anxious. I also didn’t get any follow up message, so I was not reassured.
19 October 2020 @ 16:09
Yeah I just had one too, and when I clicked on them both they disappeared how do I know if I am meant to self isolate, i don’t want a thousand pound fine because the app is broke
19 October 2020 @ 16:42
I’ve just had 3 mges and they have all disappeared and I’ve updated the app and nothing. I work on the frontline so what the hell should I do now?
19 October 2020 @ 13:03
ditto to all the above.
19 October 2020 @ 14:15
Same here!
19 October 2020 @ 12:57
Just had an alert that disappeared. I’ve updated the app and still no sign of the alert. What do I do?
19 October 2020 @ 12:39
I’ve just had an alert , disappeared before I had chance to read it! What do I do?
19 October 2020 @ 08:53
Just happened to me and hubby didn’t get chance to read it
19 October 2020 @ 07:38
Yep had an alert which vanished. Now what do I do???
19 October 2020 @ 00:06
The same thing has just happened to me.
Boris promised us ‘the best track and trace system’ several months ago I believe. I think not. Think I’ll move to New Zealand where the government aren’t inept.
19 October 2020 @ 06:50
The update didn’t work! It’s bad enough worrying about catching it and then the crapApp sends you a message that disappears immediately you try and open it.
19 October 2020 @ 09:04
Just had the notification about an hour ago and I cannot find it anywhere either on the app or email or messaging. I need to know as I work in hospitality.
18 October 2020 @ 20:50
Just had a similar thing saying possible exposure, someone has been close to you with cov19, exposure date, signal and strength have been saved. Can see alot of comments from today 18th of October. Very worrying considering it was meant to be fixed. Considering I live with my parents and have only been out with them surely this gov should have this sorted out by now.
18 October 2020 @ 19:10
You have to expand the notification by pressing the little down arrow in the top right hand corner. Yes if you just touch it it just disappears!
What annoys me is the fact that the other person knows they have Covid, have entered it on their phone and are still going out when the should be isolating!!!!
18 October 2020 @ 23:08
I’ve just got an exposure notification that disappeared as well
19 October 2020 @ 21:16
I presume it keeps the contacts and when someone adds a positive results it notifies everyone they have previously been in contact with may be for the last 5 days before symptoms show rather walking round dispute a positive result. Dunno just a guess.
Anyway I’ve just had this notification and I accidentally clicked on it and it disappeared :/
18 October 2020 @ 18:53
My partner just had one that disappeared the app is still not fixed
18 October 2020 @ 18:14
Just had the same two messages. Now they’ve disappeared.
18 October 2020 @ 18:28
Same two messages here. Nice to induce panic on a Sunday afternoon…
18 October 2020 @ 17:54
My experience is similar to Dan’s (above). Get a grip somebody and if you’re earning monstrous amounts of money give it a charity of your choice or me
18 October 2020 @ 22:23
I have had two messages but both disappeared so do I assume that I ignore them? If genuine will they
Reappear?
18 October 2020 @ 14:59
Does anyone know where on the app genuine alerts would show? I had 2 alerts today 18/10/2020, one saying I’d been in contact with someone with Covid-19, the other saying “Don’t worry…. “. Clicked on both, they took me to the app home page where there was no further info regarding these alerts. I searched app looking for where they might be kept, but there didn’t appear to be any logical place to find alerts within the app. I assume what I received was the false alarm in the article above, but as both alerts disappeared when I clicked on them it is hard to be sure.
18 October 2020 @ 15:49
I’ve had just the same message this afternoon after o put my iPhone pin in to unlock the phone couldn’t find the message anywhere! Anxiety through the roof until I read the above article and your message, got to assume it’s an error I suppose x
18 October 2020 @ 11:12
I too received a worrying message about one hour ago that I had been possibly exposed to Corona virus, It was followed by a second message saying that I don’t need to take any action ‘yet’. Both messages have now gone without me deleting them. I’m shielding my 95 year old mum so receiving messages like this has been very worrying for our whole household.
If this is a software fault it needs to be fixed immediately as it is causing a lot of unnecessary worry.
18 October 2020 @ 11:26
I’ve just had this too. What an appalling excuse for an app.
18 October 2020 @ 12:57
Obviously not fixed yet as I’ve just had the same issue!
18 October 2020 @ 10:38
When was it supposed to have been fixed, i have had the same message to day 18-10-2020 i did not get a message from the gov telling me it was a false alarm
18 October 2020 @ 10:19
My husband received an alert when out shopping. Tried to re read email when we came home and it had disappeared . We couldn’t even find it in the deleted file. Is this what this government has spent Billions of pounds on. Get it sorted out now.
18 October 2020 @ 08:10
So, if I get a notification from the app, then I get a message from the government to ignore it. Which one do I believe
18 October 2020 @ 08:31
Seem like the app is there to frighten people. I have had several messages to tell me I have been in contact with a positive case ( I think – as they disappear whilst reading them)
Feel like I don’t want to use this app again.
17 October 2020 @ 20:40
Bin the app it’s a waste of time
17 October 2020 @ 18:38
So I get an alert that someone has been diagnosed with covid 19 that I have been in contact with but I don’t need to isolate????
17 October 2020 @ 16:03
As it is this app is useless 3 or 4 times I have had notifications for them to disappear as soon as I tap on them just not good enough
17 October 2020 @ 15:29
I’ve had an alert today and it immediately disappeared before I got chance to read it.
17 October 2020 @ 14:03
I recieved an alert while out shopping in asda .I rang 119 and spoke to someone to see what I should do only to be told I was safe because I was wearing correct covering. My phone has still got a red warning. Dose this app really work ???,
17 October 2020 @ 13:07
my app notified me of possible exposure and i just managed to read that i don’t need to do anything but the the notification disappeared… this is after being frightened by the apple glitch.. this is after the supposed fix….
17 October 2020 @ 13:23
I’ve just had the same thing!!
17 October 2020 @ 13:01
I received an alert this morning and then it disappears. My wife is seen as vulnerable and scares like this are not welcome.
Sort it out!
17 October 2020 @ 11:30
Thank goodness for that I had an alert that disappeared, cancelled 40th Anniversary meal and day out as thought had to self isolate only to find out false alarm. Was very annoyed