People in China are using mobile phone apps to follow and, perhaps, help slow the spread of the coronavirus, COVID-19.

Some apps provide up-to-date information about locations with the virus, while others collect data on infected persons.

The Chinese government is working with two of the country’s largest technology companies to track the disease. Alibaba Group and Tencent Holdings created color-based systems that record the health of individuals and identify carriers of the coronavirus.

Last week, Alipay, a payment app operated by Alibaba, released a system using colored QR codes that shows the health of people in Hangzhou. A QR code links the user to an internet site with information about a subject.

Users in Hangzhou can use the app to report their official identification number and seek information. Individuals are asked to report recent travel outside the city, as well as symptoms of flu, such as a high body temperature or strong cough.

After completing the questionnaire, users receive a mobile phone message that includes a color-based QR code related to the health condition they described.

Users with a red code are told to quarantine themselves for 14 days and continue reporting their condition by using Alibaba’s DingTalk messaging app. Users with a yellow code are told to stay in quarantine for seven days, while those with a green code can travel freely.

Chinese state media said the Alibaba system would be deployed at train stations, along major roads and other travel checkpoints. The system is also being used in some neighborhoods.

Two people living in Hangzhou told Reuters they were asked to show QR codes when entering their apartment buildings. Another individual told the news agency that she was asked to show her QR code before entering the local supermarket.

Alipay said it was working with the government to expand the system nationwide.

Tencent, which operates China’s popular messaging app WeChat, reported the launch of a similar QR code-based tracking system. Tencent developed the system with help from China’s National Development and Reform Council.

The company said on Saturday the system was in use in Shenzhen. Officials said they expected it to be deployed to other parts of Guangdong province soon.

Even before the latest systems were announced, many Chinese were already using mapping and travel apps to avoid areas with coronavirus infections.

One of the apps, developed by WeChat, uses official reports to identify places in Shenzhen and Guangzhou where coronavirus cases have been confirmed. Data mapping company QuantUrban created a similar system to track nine additional cities in Guangdong province.

One user of the apps told Reuters she finds the maps can provide “psychological comfort.” The woman, who did not want her full name reported, said: “You can’t guarantee there won’t be fresh cases, but you can avoid an area that’s already hit.”

The technology website Abacus reported that citizens can request location data from their mobile phone carrier to show they had not been in affected areas. The report said that if requested, China’s state-owned telecommunication companies will send users a message listing all the areas they had visited within the past 14 days.

Detailed tracking records for mobile users exist in China because the country requires users to register their real names and other personal information when signing up for telecom services.

The administration of President Donald Trump said on Monday it will review Columbia University's federal contracts and grants over allegations of antisemitism, which it says the educational institution has shown inaction in tackling.

Rights advocates note rising antisemitism, Islamophobia and anti-Arab bias since U.S. ally Israel's devastating military assault on Gaza began after Palestinian Hamas militants' deadly October 2023 attack.

The Justice Department said a month ago it formed a task force to fight antisemitism. The U.S. Departments of Health and Education and the General Services Administration jointly made the review announcement on Monday.

"The Federal Government's Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism is considering Stop Work Orders for $51.4 million in contracts between Columbia University and the Federal Government," the joint statement said.

The agencies said no contracting actions had been taken yet.

"The task force will also conduct a comprehensive review of the more than $5 billion in federal grant commitments to Columbia University."

The agencies did not respond to requests for comment on whether there were similar reviews over allegations of Islamophobia and anti-Arab bias.

Columbia had no immediate comment. It previously said it made efforts to tackle antisemitism.

College protests

Trump has signed an executive order to combat antisemitism and pledged to deport non-citizen college students and others who took part in pro-Palestinian protests.

Columbia was at the center of college protests in which demonstrators demanded an end to U.S. support for Israel due to the humanitarian crisis caused by Israel's assault on Gaza. There were allegations of antisemitism and Islamophobia in protests and counter-protests.

During last summer's demonstrations around the country, classes were canceled, some university administrators resigned and student protesters were suspended and arrested.

While the intensity of protests has decreased in recent months, there were some demonstrations last week in New York after the expulsion of two students at Columbia University-affiliated Barnard College and after New York Governor Kathy Hochul ordered the removal of a Palestinian studies job listing at Hunter College.

A third student at Barnard College has since been expelled, this one related to the occupation of the Hamilton Hall building at Columbia last year.

The Trump administration is opening new investigations into allegations of antisemitism at five U.S. universities including Columbia and the University of California, Berkeley, the Education Department announced Monday.

It's part of President Donald Trump's promise to take a tougher stance against campus antisemitism and deal out harsher penalties than the Biden administration, which settled a flurry of cases with universities in its final weeks. It comes the same day the Justice Department announced a new task force to root out antisemitism on college campuses.

In an order signed last week, Trump called for aggressive action to fight anti-Jewish bias on campuses, including the deportation of foreign students who have participated in pro-Palestinian protests.

Along with Columbia and Berkeley, the department is now investigating the University of Minnesota, Northwestern University and Portland State University. The cases were opened using the department's power to launch its own civil rights reviews, unlike the majority of investigations, which stem from complaints.

Messages seeking comment were left with all five universities.
A statement from the Education Department criticized colleges for tolerating antisemitism after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and a wave of pro-Palestinian protests that followed. It also criticized the Biden administration for negotiating "toothless" resolutions that failed to hold schools accountable.

"Today, the Department is putting universities, colleges, and K-12 schools on notice: this administration will not tolerate continued institutional indifference to the wellbeing of Jewish students on American campuses," said Craig Trainor, the agency's acting assistant secretary for civil rights.

The department didn't provide details about the inquiries or how it decided which schools are being targeted. Presidents of Columbia and Northwestern were among those called to testify on Capitol Hill last year as Republicans sought accountability for allegations of antisemitism. The hearings contributed to the resignation of multiple university presidents, including Columbia's Minouche Shafik.

An October report from House Republicans accused Columbia of failing to punish pro-Palestinian students who took over a campus building, and it called Northwestern's negotiations with student protesters a "stunning capitulation."

House Republicans applauded the new investigations. Representative Tim Walberg, chair of the Education and Workforce Committee, said he was "glad that we finally have an administration who is taking action to protect Jewish students."

Trump's order also calls for a full review of antisemitism complaints filed with the Education Department since Oct. 7, 2023, including pending and resolved cases from the Biden administration. It encourages the Justice Department to take action to enforce civil rights laws.

Last week's order drew backlash from civil rights groups who said it violated First Amendment rights that protect political speech.

The new task force announced Monday includes the Justice and Education departments along with Health and Human Services.

"The Department takes seriously our responsibility to eradicate this hatred wherever it is found," said Leo Terrell, assistant attorney general for civil rights. "The Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism is the first step in giving life to President Trump's renewed commitment to ending anti-Semitism in our schools."

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