Google knows if you’re at home during the season

By collecting data from billions of smartphones around the world, Google aggregates user location reports to support Covid-19 prevention.

In the US, most states have ordered social exclusion and demanded that people be restricted. To aid in tracking the situation, Google creates a report of user location data and divides it into specific categories.

This report covers 6 major types of locations: public entertainment and service shops, grocery and pharmaceuticals, parks, offices, transit hubs and residential areas. Particularly in the US, the data is further broken down by each administrative unit.

The specific report in Kings County is divided into 6 categories of locations. Photo: Google.
According to this report, the rate of movement to unnecessary locations has dropped sharply but increased significantly in residential areas. This proves that people are tending to stay at home more.

In Brooklyn, Kings County, New York, for example, the data of about 2.5 million users shows that they rarely travel by public transport or to service stores. The number of people coming to the office has also decreased significantly due to working at home or being unemployed.

The number of people moving to service stores, retail shopping, and medicine plummeted. Photo: Google.
The notable category here is the park, where in each state the proportion of people moving is increasing and some is decreasing. Due to the difference in weather, there is a difference in the demand for exercising and walking people to the park in each locality. Many places have orders to close parks to limit crowds so this data will change in the future.

“We will continue to analyze the report and look forward to receiving feedback from health organizations, social organizations and local authorities. Hopefully these data will contribute to the protection of public health in the moment, ”Google CEO shared on his personal blog.

Source : Techtalk