What was claimed
The NHS test and trace app was created by Serco, not the NHS.
Our verdict
Serco did not build and does not operate the NHS test and trace app.
The NHS test and trace app was created by Serco, not the NHS.
Serco did not build and does not operate the NHS test and trace app.
We’ve seen multiple claims that suggest the recently launched NHS Test and Trace app for England and Wales is not made by and owned by the NHS, but by Serco, a private company that is contracted to provide a range of public services.
Firstly, Serco played no role in the creation of the NHS Test and Trace app. This is shown in numerous ways—the company is not listed as a group involved in the app, which includes arms of the NHS, as well as staff from the private firm Accenture, and the company is not mentioned in relation to the app in coverage
Serco is not listed as processing any data in the app’s privacy notice.
Confusion may have stemmed from the fact that Serco does play a role in the Test and Trace process, rather than the app itself. Along with other companies, Serco is contracted to manage facilities at some regional test sites as well as some aspects of contact tracing via call centres for pillar 2 tests, (which are tests taken by members of the public). However, this work is separate from the app.
It’s unclear where this claim first originated, although Russia Today did claim Serco were behind the app in May.
Contracts awarded to Serco by the government can be found in the awarded and closed section of gov.uk’s Contracts Finder tool.
This article is part of our work fact checking potentially false pictures, videos and stories on Facebook. You can read more about this—and find out how to report Facebook content—here. For the purposes of that scheme, we’ve rated this claim as false because Serco has nothing to do with the NHS Covid-19 Test and Trace app.
You’ve probably seen a surge in misleading and unsubstantiated medical advice since the Covid-19 outbreak. If followed, it can put lives at serious risk. We need your help to protect us all from false and harmful information.
We’ve seen people claiming to be health professionals, family members, and even the government – offering dangerous tips like drinking warm water or gargling to prevent infection. Neither of these will work.
The longer claims like these go unchecked, the more they are repeated and believed. It can put people’s health at serious risk, when our services are already under pressure.
Today, you have the opportunity to help save lives. Good information about Covid-19 could be the difference between someone taking the right precautions to protect themselves and their families, or not. Could you help protect us all from false and harmful information today?
Bad information ruins lives. It promotes hate, damages people’s health, and hurts democracy. You deserve better.