According to the CVE-2020-12860 technical documentation, COVIDSafe through v1.0.17 "allows a remote attacker to access phone name and model information because a BLE device can have four roles and COVIDSafe uses all of them" [1].
This allows for "re-identification of a device, and potentially identification of the owner's name" [1].
另 lìng 一个 yí gè 由 yóu 研究 yán jiū 人员 rén yuán Jim Jim Mussared Mussared 和 hé Alwen Alwen Tiu Tiu 发现 fā xiàn 的 de 漏洞 lòu dòng CVE CVE - - 2020 2020 - - 12856 12856 描述 miáo shù 了 le 一个 yí gè " " 静默 jìng mò 配对 pèi duì 问题 wèn tí " " , , 其中 qí zhōng " " 配对 pèi duì 过程 guò chéng 涉及 shè jí 交换 jiāo huàn 受害者 shòu hài zhě 手机 shǒu jī 的 de 永久 yǒng jiǔ 标识符 biāo shí fú : : 手机 shǒu jī 中 zhōng 蓝牙 lán yá 设备 shè bèi 的 de 身份 shēn fèn 地址 dì zhǐ 以及 yǐ jí 一个 yí gè 称为 chēng wéi 身份 shēn fèn 解析 jiě xī 密钥 mì yào ( ( IRK IRK ) ) 的 de 加密 jiā mì 密钥 mì yào " " [ [ 3 3 ] ] 。 。
A separate vulnerability, CVE-2020-12856, discovered by researchers Jim Mussared and Alwen Tiu, describes a "silent pairing issue" where "the bonding process involves exchanges of permanent identifiers of the victim phone: the identity address of the bluetooth device in the phone and a cryptographic key called Identity Resolving Key (IRK)" [3].
A critical detail: According to a Twitter thread by security researcher Matthew Rocklin (@matthewrdev), "the app *does not* broadcast the device name" in the standard operation of the app [4].
相反 xiāng fǎn , , " " 当 dāng 另 lìng 一部 yī bù 手机 shǒu jī 检测 jiǎn cè 到 dào 你 nǐ 时 shí , , 你 nǐ 是 shì 通过 tōng guò 蓝牙 lán yá 地址 dì zhǐ 而 ér 不是 bú shì 设备 shè bèi 名称 míng chēng 来 lái 识别 shí bié 的 de " " [ [ 4 4 ] ] 。 。
Instead, "when another phone detects you, you are identified using a Bluetooth address and not a device name" [4].
However, the CVE-2020-12860 vulnerability allows attackers to extract phone model AND device name information through BLE role misuse, meaning the device name IS accessible through exploitation of this vulnerability, even if not broadcast in normal operation [1][2].
### ### 隐私 yǐn sī 政策 zhèng cè 披露 pī lù
### Privacy Policy Disclosure
关于 guān yú 未 wèi 在 zài 隐私 yǐn sī 政策 zhèng cè 中 zhōng 提及 tí jí 此 cǐ 问题 wèn tí 的 de 声明 shēng míng : : QUT QUT 关于 guān yú COVIDSafe COVIDSafe 实施 shí shī 的 de 学术研究 xué shù yán jiū 发现 fā xiàn , , 政府 zhèng fǔ 提供 tí gōng 了 le 一份 yī fèn 重点 zhòng diǎn 关注 guān zhù 蓝牙 lán yá 数据 shù jù 收集 shōu jí 的 de 隐私 yǐn sī 影响 yǐng xiǎng 评估 píng gū [ [ 5 5 ] ] 。 。
Regarding the claim that this wasn't mentioned in the privacy policy: The QUT academic research on COVIDSafe implementation found that the government provided a Privacy Impact Assessment focusing on Bluetooth data collection [5].
However, the specifics of what information could be extracted through BLE vulnerabilities may not have been explicitly detailed in consumer-facing privacy policy documentation [5].
The privacy policy did note that "a Bluetooth scan can be used to gather information about the location of the user" [6], but may not have detailed the specific vulnerability of device name/model extraction [5].
While the claim presents a scenario where "a domestic violence abuser can tell whether the victim is at home and their house-mates are not," this appears to be a **theoretical vulnerability rather than documented evidence of actual exploitation** [1][3].
The CVE documents discuss the technical capability for "long term tracking" through BLE identifier extraction [3], but there is no evidence in the published vulnerability disclosures, academic literature, or media reporting of actual instances where this vulnerability was exploited for domestic violence tracking [2][3].
This is a **legitimate security concern** that researchers identified and responsibly disclosed, but characterizing it as a known exploitation method without documented instances is an extrapolation beyond what the evidence shows.
### ### " " 广播 guǎng bō " " 的 de 技术 jì shù 准确性 zhǔn què xìng
Device names are not continuously broadcast in COVIDSafe's normal operation.
相反 xiāng fǎn , , 它们 tā men 是 shì 通过 tōng guò 允许 yǔn xǔ 攻击者 gōng jī zhě 从 cóng 设备 shè bèi 蓝牙 lán yá 协议 xié yì 栈 zhàn 提取 tí qǔ 此 cǐ 信息 xìn xī 的 de BLE BLE 技术 jì shù 漏洞 lòu dòng ( ( 角色 jué sè 滥用 làn yòng ) ) 而 ér 暴露 bào lù 的 de [ [ 1 1 ] ] [ [ 2 2 ] ] 。 。
Rather, they are exposed through BLE technical vulnerabilities (role misuse) that allow attackers to extract this information from the device's Bluetooth stack [1][2].
这是 zhè shì 一个 yí gè 有 yǒu 意义 yì yì 的 de 区别 qū bié , , 因为 yīn wèi 它 tā 影响 yǐng xiǎng 了 le 威胁 wēi xié 建模 jiàn mó — — — — 攻击者 gōng jī zhě 需要 xū yào 主动 zhǔ dòng 进行 jìn xíng 技术 jì shù 利用 lì yòng , , 而 ér 不仅仅 bù jǐn jǐn 是 shì 处于 chǔ yú 蓝牙 lán yá 范围 fàn wéi 内 nèi [ [ 3 3 ] ] 。 。
This is a meaningful distinction because it affects threat modeling—an attacker would need to actively conduct a technical exploit, not merely be in Bluetooth range [3].
However, the claim does reference legitimate security vulnerabilities (CVE-2020-12860 and CVE-2020-12856) that are well-documented in official sources.
The underlying CVE disclosures and academic research are from credible sources:
- **CVE-2020-12860**: Published by MITRE/NVD (National Vulnerability Database), official vulnerability tracking [1]
- **CVE-2020-12856**: Discovered and disclosed by Jim Mussared (George Robotics) and Alwen Tiu (ANU), published on GitHub with technical documentation [3]
- **QUT Academic Research**: Peer-reviewed article on COVIDSafe implementation from Queensland University of Technology [5]
These sources are credible technical disclosures, not partisan sources.
**Did Labor have equivalent technology privacy failures?**
Search conducted: "Labor government technology privacy failures contact tracing"
Labor's involvement with contact tracing technology was limited during this period, as the Coalition government held power (2013-2022) and developed COVIDSafe.
* * * *
Labor was in opposition and did not develop an alternative contact tracing app [8].
However, broader technology privacy concerns existed across both parties:
- Both Labor and Coalition governments have faced criticism for inadequate privacy protections in digital government services [8]
- Privacy reform efforts in Australia have been cross-party issues, with concerns raised about government data handling practices generally, not specific to one party [8]
- The broader privacy framework issues that necessitated special COVIDSafe legislation are systemic to Australia's fragmented privacy law regime, not unique to Coalition implementation [5]
In essence, there is no direct Labor equivalent because Labor was not in government during the COVID-19 pandemic and did not develop contact tracing apps.
The claim is **correct that a genuine technical vulnerability existed** in COVIDSafe that could theoretically expose device model and name information, and that this information could potentially be used to track someone's location/presence [1][3].
The app also included additional privacy protections compared to comparable apps like Singapore's TraceTogether, including criminal penalties for unauthorized data use [5].
### ### 关于 guān yú 实际 shí jì 利用 lì yòng 的 de 夸大 kuā dà 声明 shēng míng
### Overstated Claims About Practical Exploitation
The leap from "a technical vulnerability exists that theoretically could expose device information" to "domestic violence abusers can exploit this" is not supported by evidence.
The government may not have explicitly detailed BLE vulnerability risks to general users, though privacy professionals would expect such risks to be part of security threat modeling [5].
隐私 yǐn sī 政策 zhèng cè 确实 què shí 披露 pī lù 了 le 蓝牙 lán yá 数据 shù jù 收集 shōu jí , , 但 dàn 潜在 qián zài 的 de BLE BLE 攻击 gōng jī 细节 xì jié 可能 kě néng 不是 bú shì 面向 miàn xiàng 消费者 xiāo fèi zhě 的 de [ [ 5 5 ] ] [ [ 6 6 ] ] 。 。
The privacy policy did disclose Bluetooth data collection, but specifics of potential BLE attacks may not have been consumer-facing [5][6].
### ### 实际 shí jì 影响 yǐng xiǎng 评估 píng gū
### Actual Impact Assessment
鉴于 jiàn yú : :
Given that:
- The vulnerability was patched relatively quickly (within ~3 weeks) [3]
- The app remained voluntary and had low uptake (never reached government targets) [5]
- The exploitation would require technical sophistication beyond casual surveillance [3]
- No documented cases of exploitation for domestic violence exist [1][3]
The **actual practical harm appears limited** compared to the severity the claim implies.
The claim is correct that: (1) a genuine technical vulnerability existed allowing device model/name extraction, and (2) this information could theoretically be used to track presence.
However, the claim is misleading in: (1) characterizing theoretical vulnerability as documented exploitation for domestic violence, (2) using "broadcast" imprecisely, and (3) omitting that the vulnerability was patched quickly and responsibly disclosed.
The claim is correct that: (1) a genuine technical vulnerability existed allowing device model/name extraction, and (2) this information could theoretically be used to track presence.
However, the claim is misleading in: (1) characterizing theoretical vulnerability as documented exploitation for domestic violence, (2) using "broadcast" imprecisely, and (3) omitting that the vulnerability was patched quickly and responsibly disclosed.