Canadians’ Trips to Liquor Stores, Pharmacies Tracked via Phones During Pandemic

A man looks at his phone as he walks along the Samsung stand during the Mobile World Congress wireless show in Barcelona, Spain, on Feb. 27, 2017. The Canadian Press/AP, Emilio Morenatti

A report sent to the House of Commons ethics committee shows that Canadians’ movements, including trips to the liquor store and pharmacy, were closely tracked via their mobile phones without their knowledge during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Outbreak intelligence analysts BlueDot prepared reports using anonymized data for the Public Health Agency of Canada to help it understand travel patterns during the pandemic.