COCOA, also known as the “contact confirmation application” is a new smartphone application that can make a difference in our fight with the COVID-19.

Whoever is using this application will receive notifications regarding possible contact with people infected with coronavirus, just by turning on their Bluetooth.

The application has been developed by the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare and has been released to prevent the spreading of the virus.

If you may have contacted a person positive of COVID-19, a notification will appear on your phone if you have downloaded the application.

COCOA can be easily downloaded on iOS devices from the App Store or on Google Play for Android devices.

After you download the application and when going outside, make sure to have the Bluetooth on so that the app can do its job.

If more people download the application in Japan, a possible lockdown can be avoided and it will save more lives and prevent people from being infected.

Unfortunately, for the moment there haven’t been many downloads due to the citizens' concerns regarding security and privacy.

The opinions of the people in Japan are biased; some are taking a positive take and decide to use the application so they can help with protecting others, but many are being skeptical or seem to think that downloading it is a hassle.

There have been many opinions and reasons including not knowing how to install it, leaking of information, or people just thinking that is unrelated to them so they just don’t want to.

Most of the citizens, however, are most wary in terms of privacy and security, therefore the lack of downloads.

The application itself is safe and a good way to protect yourself and your beloved ones. The information is only saved on your smartphone and you can erase it anytime you wish to do so.

Furthermore, you don’t even need to write down your name, phone number, email, or anything else.

You are the only one that has access to the information and in case you have contacted someone infected, there will be no data regarding your location or information about you/ the other person, but you will know that someone infected was nearby and that way you can isolate yourself and refrain from contacting other people so you can protect them.

By deleting the application, everything stored on it will also be erased and in terms of privacy and security, there are no worries.

What is even better is that if you use the application and if you had possible contact with someone infected, you will be able to receive a consultation and get tested right away!

That way, you can reduce the risks and also make sure you won’t be spreading the virus to other people, too.

Unfortunately, you will only be notified if someone is infected if they are also using COCOA, so you should keep that in mind and take all the necessary precautions before leaving your house.

Cases in Japan are again increasing and downloading this application can save lives and prevent the escalation of people infected with COVID-19.

You can read more about the application here and for those of you who don’t speak Japanese, there’s no need to worry as the application is also available in English and Chinese.