Last Sunday the Australian government launched its COVIDSafe contact tracing app, and my week of Monday 26 April to Sunday 3 May 2020 contained a lot talking about it — for which I’m not paid of course. However my writing for ZDNet was about longer-term issues of national cyber resilience and diplomacy. Mostly.
Continue reading “Weekly Wrap 518: COVIDSafe, cybers, and a lot of wind”The 9pm His Plague Diary 7

It’s Day 42 of Stilgherrian’s coronavirus isolation. People are getting restless, and Australia’s COVID-19 tracing app has been downloaded by a couple million loyal citizens. There’s quite a bit about that.
Continue reading “The 9pm His Plague Diary 7”Weekly Wrap 517: Learning to endure the lockdown
My week of Monday 20 to Sunday 26 April 2020 revealed to me how the COVID-19 lockdown is making depression more likely — but also how a long walk in the sun can help with that. And Australia’s COVID-19 contact tracing app became a hot topic.
Continue reading “Weekly Wrap 517: Learning to endure the lockdown”Talking COVID-19 tracing apps (again) on ABC Adelaide


Prime Minister Scott Morrison continues to encourage Australians to use the government’s forthcoming COVID-19 contact tracing app. While he and the relevant ministers are doing their best to reassure us that our privacy will be preserved, it seems there’s still a lot of mistrust out there.
Continue reading “Talking COVID-19 tracing apps (again) on ABC Adelaide”Weekly Wrap 516: Even the cockatoos are suffering during the COVID-19 lockdown
My week of Monday 13 to Sunday 19 April 2020 saw me write the first proper article in nearly a month. It’s an amazing change. And the weekly podcasts continue. Is this a new pattern?
Continue reading “Weekly Wrap 516: Even the cockatoos are suffering during the COVID-19 lockdown”The 9pm His Plague Diary 6

It’s Day 33 of Stilgherrian’s coronavirus isolation. He’s settling into a routine, but others are starting to get restless and are demanding release. Meanwhile, Donald Trump is going insane.
Continue reading “The 9pm His Plague Diary 6”