Web searches could help detect Covid-19 outbreaks early, study says

Analysing internet search activity may help epidemiologists detect Covid outbreaks (Andrew Matthews/PA)

People’s online searches can be used as a tool to help epidemiologists spot coronavirus outbreaks early, researchers have said.

Using symptom-related searches through Google could allow experts to predict a peak in cases on average 17 days in advance, a group from University College London (UCL) said.