Data collected is anonymous and sent to public health systems that receive test results from laboratories and doctor’s offices. Users provide general information such as age and zip code and have the option to include race, ethnicity, sex, and symptoms, but it is not required.

‘It’s anonymous, which I think is important for people wanting to maintain their privacy. At the same time, it’s also completely voluntary,’ Andrew Weitz, Ph.D., a program director at the NIH and co-lead of the project, told ABC News."