Location-aware systems or location-based services: a survey with applications to CoViD-19 contact tracking

With the CoViD-19 pandemic, location awareness technologies have seen renewed interests due to the numerous contact tracking mobile application variants developed, deployed, and discussed. For some, location-aware applications are primarily a producer of geospatial Big Data required for vital geospatial analysis and visualization of the spread of the disease in a state of emergency. For others, comprehensive tracking of citizens constitutes a dangerous violation of fundamental rights. Commercial web-based location-aware applications both collect data and-through spatial analysis and connection to services-provide value to users. This value is what motivates users to share increasingly private and comprehensive data. The willingness of users to share data in return for services has been a key concern with web-based variants of the technology since the beginning. With a focus on two privacy preserving CoViD-19 contact tracking applications, this survey walks through the key steps of developing a privacy preserving context-aware application: from types of applications and business models, through architectures and privacy strategies, to representations.