The “Green Pass” announced some time ago by Austria's Federal Chancellor Sebastian Kurz (ÖVP) is to be launched on June 4, 2021, at least nationally. Health Minister Wolfgang Mückstein (Greens) announced this. The app should already be "EU-fit", but initially only applicable in Germany.

In the Union area, the solution is to be used by July 1, 2021 at the latest for travel and national access restrictions. Austria will be launching an app in June 2021 that will already meet the common requirements, said Mückstein.

However, there are more and more concerns about data protection behind the scenes, because the law behind the application provides for a wide range of data to be linked. According to a report by the daily newspaper Kurier, which refers to Epicenter Works, current and historical data about the occupation, educational path, unemployment, sick leave and even the income level should be included. According to the institute, this would be covered by law.

The further development therefore remains to be seen, because if such extensive data links are actually implemented, considerable resistance on the part of data protection officers is to be expected. The inclusion of the information cited in the previous paragraph makes no sense at all in connection with the need to prove whether one has been tested, vaccinated or recovered. Some privacy advocates fear that by scanning the QR codes, proper movement profiles can be created. In fact, so far neither the EU Commission nor the national governments have been able to conclusively explain who actually gets access to the queries and where and for how long they are stored.