Over the past year, millions upon millions of people have been diagnosed with COVID-19. And unfortunately, the total number continues to rise day after day.

Across the world, people are taking a variety of steps to slow the spread of COVID-19. For example:

• People are staying home more to avoid contact with people outside their family
• People are wearing masks when in close contact with others
• People are getting the COVID-19 vaccine, when applicable

Along with all this, we’re also finding that technology can play a big role in helping with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Below, we dive into three ways this is happening:

1. Contactless Payments

Even with some restrictions in place, most people still shop in person for some items, such as groceries.

Of course, there are some risks involved in doing so. Not only are you putting yourself in close proximity to other people—some of whom may be suffering from COVID-19 and not know it—but you’ll also find yourself touching a variety of items.

For example, when you walk into a grocery store, you touch everything from a cart to the food you’re buying. And then when you get to the checkout counter, you have to hand your cash or credit card to the cashier (or insert it into a machine that requires you to touch it).

This is where contactless payments can help. With this, you don’t have to touch anything to checkout. And that allows you to reduce the risk of getting germs on your hands which can lead to everything from COVID-19 to the flu to the common cold.

This technology is growing by leaps and bounds, and development has sped up as the result of contactless payment technology.

2. Online Communication

Even before the pandemic, more people than ever were working from home. However, once the reality of the pandemic set in, the majority of people were forced to work from home for an indefinite period of time.

This resulted in online communication becoming more important than ever. For instance, people began to use IM services to communicate with co-workers. Just the same, the use of webinars and video chat reached new heights.

You should expect online communication to remain a big part of business moving forward, especially as more and more companies decide to let their employees work remotely in the future.

Without online communication, you’d be stuck communicating like it was in the 90s. You don’t really want to go back to sending faxes, do you?

3. At-Home Coronavirus Tests

This was one of the biggest developments in the early months of the pandemic, as these tests allow people to determine if they have coronavirus without leaving home.

While the coronavirus test itself may not be technologically advanced, the way in which you receive results can be.

For example, many providers allow you to stay in touch regarding your results via text message. And just the same, you can use an app to check the status of your test and receive results.

Without technology, it’s safe to say that at-home tests wouldn’t be nearly as efficient.

You can expect the at-home test experience to improve even more over the next year, as providers continue to tweak their system to maximize efficiency.

Final Thoughts

So, there you have it. Now, it should be clear to you as to the many ways technology is helping with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rather than run away from technology, look for ways to embrace it. You may find that it’s just what you need to feel better about remaining healthy.

Do your part in stopping the spread. It doesn’t matter if you’re using technology or taking basic steps to do your part, you’re able to make a difference. And when it comes to something as serious as the COVID-19 pandemic, that’s a game-changer.