South Korea is relying on technology to contain COVID-19, including measures that would break privacy laws in the US — and so far, it's working

People wearing face masks walk on a street in central Seoul, South Korea April 22, 2020.HEO RAN/REUTERS

• South Korea is one of the only countries in the world that has brought a major COVID-19 outbreak under control. It's not currently enforcing stay-at-home orders, and most businesses are open.
• The country is relying on high-tech solutions — a government app tracks the location of new airport arrivals, and mandatory location tracking bracelets are given to people who break quarantine laws.
• Korean health officials are also developing "smart city" tools to bolster existing networks of testing and contact tracing, but some privacy advocates are pushing back.
• Beyond high-tech approaches, South Korea has also spent hundreds of millions of dollars on a more straightforward measure: Making COVID-19 tests widely available.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

In Seoul, South Korea, much of daily life has returned to normal despite the coronavirus pandemic — restaurants, shopping malls, and parks have been filled in recent weeks as the South Korean government started winding down social distancing measures.

It's one of the first countries in the world to bring a major COVID-19 outbreak under control. Cases in South Korea peaked at 909 on Feb. 28 and have gradually diminished since, and the current death toll from coronavirus is 236, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The country has controlled COVID-19 by rapidly scaling up testing as well as relying on other high-tech solutions: A government app tracks the location of all new visitors to the country; people who violate quarantine have to wear a location-tracking bracelet; "smart city" tech is being deployed to bolster contact tracing networks.

"We are in a lengthy tug of war with the coronavirus," Health Minister Park Neung-hoo told Reuters in April, adding that such measures may need to remain in place for months or years.

The success of Asia's fourth-largest economy could serve as a lesson to other countries, like the US. While there are clear differences between the two nations — for one, South Korea's single-payer healthcare system makes testing and treatment free for all citizens — the US is still in the process of scaling up testing and exploring how best to deploy contact tracing networks on a state-by-state basis.

Here's a look at some of the cutting-edge technology being used to fight COVID-19 in South Korea.