Naga City makes eSalvar contact tracing system an ordinance

NAGA CITY — On Monday, September 14, 2020, Mayor Nelson Legacion and the Sangguniang Panlungsod ng Naga formally made the city’s contact tracing app an ordinance in an effort to make contact tracing in the city more efficient and faster.

Dubbed as the “Digital Contact Tracing System Ordinance”, a citywide contact tracing system requiring businesses and establishments in Naga City to register and use the locally developed “eSalvar” apps with residents and individuals coming to Naga City to register for their QR Code IDs which will be scanned upon entry and exit of establishments within the city.

The ordinance was authored by City Councilor Lito Del Rosario.

Mayor Nelson Legacion also urged members of the Metro Naga Development Council, composing of different municipalities around Naga City to also adopt the eSalvar contact tracing app and system.

As of posting, IMJi News is still waiting for the City Government of Naga to post the copy of the ordinance online.

eSalvar App

eSalvar is locally developed in partnership with local developer NUECA Technologies, the Metro Naga Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the City Government of Naga.

It is a contact tracing app similar to the national government’s StaySafe.ph app but with a different implementation.

Residents and those coming to Naga City are required to register at eSalvar.com to get their QR Code IDs. Registration booths have also been set up across the 27 barangays of the city and other establishments. Some businesses even offer printing of QR Code PVC IDs at a cost.

Entry to different businesses and establishments in the city shall require scanning of the QR Code IDs upon entry and before exiting and data shall be sent to eSalvar’s servers for cross-checking if the individual had been in close contact with a COVID-19 positive individual recently, given that he/she had also checked in or out using the eSalvar app.

Individuals who have not yet registered on the eSalvar system have to option to fill out the traditional contact tracing forms, depending on the business establishment’s policies.

Data Privacy Concerns

The city’s contact tracing initiative initially had been met with skepticism about its data privacy policies by other groups and individuals due to the nature of data which will be collected.

When registering for a QR Code ID, an individual is required to submit his/her full name, complete current and permanent address, birthday, gender, profession or occupation, nationality, mobile number and a profile photo.

Mayor Nelson Legacion, along with NUECA Technologies’ Magno Conag III assured the public that the data of the registered individuals shall only be used for contact tracing and nothing else, further stating that only select members of the Health Emergency Response Task Force (HERTF) shall only have access to the data upon activation of the contact tracing by the city.

The city further assured that the data will be stored in a secure server hosted by the City Government of Naga.

One concern that cropped up during it’s initial stages of implementation is that individuals can register multiple times, with the city assuring that only each individual can only register once.

Registration for individuals and businesses are available at eSalvar.com