Shenzhen harnesses its big data resources to fight novel coronavirus

Shenzhen, known as an innovation hub, is using its big data resources to fight against the novel coronavirus.

People in the city can report their health conditions through the iShenzhen app, which debuted Saturday. Nearly 200,000 people have registered and finished their reporting as of Tuesday.

Moreover, the app provides a variety of services on virus control and prevention, such as the latest updates on the epidemic, online health consultations and psychological counseling.

And 4,000 citizens on average have used the health consultation service every day since it started service.

Shenzhen began building itself into a smart city in 2013. It established a government services and data management bureau on Feb 2 last year that is in charge of relevant big data collection and analysis.

"We employ big data to analyze the epidemic's development and personnel activities. For the confirmed, we can accurately find his or her fellow travelers through big data," said Yang Feng, an official of the bureau.

"Some data will be publicized to strengthen public awareness of the virus without privacy leaks after we structured the collected data."

The i Shenzhen app was put into use a year ago. With about 7 million registered users, it has deeply mined the data to provide civic service, and 7,484 kinds of public services can be accessed on it.

On Monday, 96.12 percent pubic services were done through the app. For stay-at-home residents, they can even view Shenzhen Museum exhibitions using it.