Researchers in Australia have just discovered that the disease-causing COVID-19 coronavirus can survive a very long time on a smartphone screen – longer than “classic” influenza viruses. Virus viability was tested in a controlled environment.
Researchers at the Australian Science Agency found that in a tightly controlled environment, COVID-19 coronavirus can survive for 28 days, while the traditional influenza virus can survive for 17 days. It sounds scary, but the good news is that this is a lab environment that is thankfully different from what happens on our phones every day.
The finding, however, is troubling – the researchers say the coronavirus is “incredibly resistant” compared to other viruses and thus can survive on different surfaces much longer than anticipated. We add that the conditions were very specific – the virus on the smartphone was in the dark (to negate the effect of ultraviolet light) and at a constant temperature. Thus, it is quite far from the normal conditions in which we use phones.