Coronavirus Can Survive on Smartphone Screens for 28 Days: Study
Oct. 13, 2020According to the study by Australian researchers published in the Virology Journal,SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the spread of coronavirus, stays alive for up to 28 dayson common surfaces like glass, stainless steel, and even banknotes at 20°C and 50% relative humidity.
“The persistence of SARS-COV-2 on glass and vinyl (both common screen and screen protector materials, suggest that touchscreen devices may provide a potential source of transmission, and should regularly be disinfected especially in multi-user environments,”states the report.
To come to this conclusion,the researchers conducted various experiments at 20°C, 30°C and 40°C in dark to avoid UV light. While the virus stays alive for 28 days at 20°C, it survives for 7 days and up to 2 days at 30°C and 40°C respectively. You can learn more about the process in the journal righthere.
Hence, if you’re in a humid area where the temperature lurks around 20°C, there is no reason why you shouldn’t sanitize your devices. Even if you’re in a relatively hot region, extra safety measures will never go in vain. If you’re looking for ways tosanitize your phone, our guide on the same will come in handy.
Subin writes about consumer tech, software, and security. He secretly misses the headphone jack while pretending he’s better off with the wireless freedom.
