Novel Corona virus outbreak is spreading in different parts of the world and a lot of people around the globe wants to know more about the virus. The World Health Organization (WHO) have released important information and safety tips that aids in tackling the Corona virus. Now, Google too is aiding in the fight against Corona virus.
The Internet search giant, in partnership with WHO has launched an SOS alert for all Novel Corona virus searches. First introduced in 2017, Google's SOS alerts are meant for critical events which may involve public safety.
These curated search results are ad-free, and they are designed to offer accurate and useful resource to the public during times of emergency. The SOS alert will help people to easily access resources related to Corona virus.Today we launched an SOS Alert w/ @WHO, to make resources about #coronavirus easily accessible. When people search for related info on @Google, they’ll find the alert atop results page w/ direct access to safety tips, info, resources & Twitter updates from WHO.— Google Communications (@Google_Comms) January 30, 2020
Anyone that searches for "Corona virus" or terms related to Corona virus on Google Search, the person will see a curated search page with the latest news, safety tips, info, resources, and also live updates from WHO on Twitter.
According to a support document, Google says that it sources for its contents for its SOS alerts from government agencies, first responders, trusted media outlets, and NGOs. The company also uses some its product like Google News and Google Maps to aggregate information.
For now, Google is showing the same alerts across all countries but these might be localized sometime later.
The WHO recently declared the Corona virus outbreak a global public health emergency For now, there have been over 8,000 confirmed cases and over 200 deaths globally.
Google, in a tweet, has said that it has given the Chinese Red Cross a $250,000 grant, and has raised over $800K via donations.
To help support relief efforts, @Googleorg issued a $250,000 direct grant to the Chinese Red Cross. Additionally we launched an internal campaign inviting Googlers to donate. So far, https://t.co/ldmgae16C7 and Googlers have raised over $800K USD (3.5M rmb).— Google Communications (@Google_Comms) January 30, 2020