Status: 02.09.2022 8:39 p.m
A wording in the warning app NINA has caused confusion. In terms of content, it was about lifting the nationwide corona warning. However, an “all clear” appeared in the app. Now it should be improved.
A confusing message was sent via the NINA warning app on Friday. The substantive message: The nationwide corona warning has been lifted. Literally, however, the app spoke of an “all clear”.
The following headline was to be read specifically: “All clear: Corona virus: Information from the Federal Ministry of Health”. The text then went on to say: “This is the all-clear for the ‘Coronavirus: Information from the Federal Ministry of Health’ warning of April 7th, 2022”. This warning has been lifted.
Potential user confusion
This news contained a certain potential for confusion – some may have asked themselves whether Corona is no longer officially classified as a danger. The Federal Ministry of Health countered this impression. You only have an updated text to the person responsible for the app Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK) sent.
“Coronavirus remains a serious threat”
In this text, which can be seen in the app after the lines quoted above, it says verbatim: “This is important information from the Federal Ministry of Health. The corona virus is still a serious risk to your health. Use the offers for the corona -Vaccination and – if necessary – refresh your vaccination protection. Even if the nationwide warning is hereby lifted, continue to observe the recommendations for action given, especially the AHA rules.”
A ministry spokesman also referred to the Robert Koch Institute, which continues to assess the overall risk of Covid-19 for the health of the population in Germany as high.
Technical background
There are technical reasons why the wording in the NINA-Warnapp leaves room for a certain lack of clarity. That explained the BBK. As the office explained, there are only three states in the app: “Warning”, “Update” and “All clear”. Simply removing an existing warning “quietly” is therefore not yet possible. That means: As soon as the office changes a warning in the system, the app sends an update. The nationwide corona warning was accordingly removed under the technical title “All clear”.
system should be further developed
In order to prevent future confusion, the system is now to be further developed, according to the information provided by the office. Then it should be possible to remove messages from the app “silently” – i.e. without notification. In the specific case, the BKK sharpened the following words:
To avoid any misunderstandings: The corona pandemic continues. There is no all-clear for Corona!
The BKK also explained that regular “cleaning up” in the app was necessary so that “current warning messages can be better perceived by users”.
How do warnings come in Warnapps?
Medien-Communikations-Gesellschaft mbH (mecom) – a subsidiary of the German Press Agency – develops and operates, among other things, the modular warning system MoWaS for the Federal Republic of Germany. With MoWaS, official warnings for the population are recorded and securely distributed to a large number of warning multipliers. These include media or warning apps like NINA.
Parts of the NINA warning app are filled with official information that is publicly available by the dpa Custom Content department on behalf of the Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK).