The operators of the Luca app have announced that contact data collection will be suspended from the end of March. From then on, check-in for the transmission of contact details will not be possible for Luca users for the time being. This means that Corona tracking can no longer be carried out with the Luca app. However, the operators of the app point out that the app still wants to promote gastronomy and culture.
Future uses
This means that users can continue to access additional information about the location, such as the website, food or drink menu, location map, program or the line-up, the program of a festival
Luca Pay will also be introduced soon. A payment function that makes it easy to pay with the app when visiting a Luca location.
Other previous functionalities remain. Users can still
Luca infrastructure for contact data collection will be retained
The background to this considerable reduction in the scope of functions by the original core function is the expiry of the federal states' contracts for the use of the Luca app for contact data collection at the end of March 2022.
Why countries are leaving?
The states' exit was already announced in February. The Tagesschau states that the countries “are not convinced of the added value of the Luca app” ( HERE ). In the same article, one of the creators of Luca, Culture4life CEO Patrick Hennig, describes the new orientation in such a way that the health authorities should use the app in the future "hopefully endemic situation" when they actually need it, for example in the event of local outbreaks.
Elimination not final
The elimination of contact data collection is therefore not final for the time being. The company is maintaining the necessary infrastructure so that states and individual health authorities have the opportunity to start using the system again if necessary, for example in local Corona hotspots. Instead of annual contracts, monthly contracts will also be possible in the future at significantly reduced costs ( HERE ). Hennig therefore only speaks of standby.
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If a state or health authority decides to use Luca again, users would be able to check in normally at Luca locations again to store their contact details. The possibility of scanning Luca codes with the Corona warning app will then be possible again.
Forced strategic realignment by Luca
In a video from February 2022, Luca maker Patrick Hennig announced the strategic realignment of the Luca app as the digitization tool for gastronomy and culture. ( HERE ). After the non-voluntary loss of the contact data collection functionality, the app is to be completely repositioned as a service app for gastronomy and culture. The relevance of the app for the digitization of these leisure areas is emphasized.
In this video, the managing director of Culture4Life described the Luca app as “one of the few success stories in the digitalization of Germany”. “More than 40 million users have registered with Luca and half a million locations.” Luca has recorded check-ins over 330 million times. In the future, Luca wants to simplify and improve people's lives, especially in gastronomy and culture, through digitalization. The use of the Luca app should ensure a better customer experience, “from ordering to paying to tipping” ( HERE ).
History of the Luca app
The Luca app was launched in 2020 to provide a simple and secure way to record digital data, given the great criticism of the Corona warning app in its early days and the paperwork involved in the mandatory recording of contact details in the catering and event sectors and contact tracing. Behind the Luca app is, among others, the band Fantastische Vier with Smudo as the prominent face of the app.
Data protection criticism
The Luca app has repeatedly been at the center of criticism. The form of data storage in particular attracted various critics. The Chaos Computer Club, always on the lookout for security gaps in digital products, was particularly active here ( HERE ).
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The Luca skeptics were particularly bothered by the concept of central data storage. Critics warned against misuse of the data collected via the Luca system ( HERE and HERE ). Although the criticized Luca encryption system withstood attacks, the Luca makers were unable to prevent the police in Mainz from illegally querying guests' data via the health department in one case in order to investigate a possible crime.
Conclusion
The still unresolved doubts about the security of the Luca app led the federal states not to continue the contracts with the provider Culture4Life at the end of March of this year. This means that one of the core functions of the app, the recording of contact details to determine corona infection chains, is no longer necessary. The operators are responding with a strategic realignment of the app and want to expand it into the leading digitalization tool for the catering and event sectors. The previous core functionality of contact data collection for Corona tracking should remain on board as a standby function. In addition to the previous features, there will also be new functionalities such as Luca ID for identification and Luca Pay, an in-app payment option.
Related to the topic: Hackers can attack health authorities via the Luca app
Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )