ZAGREB, Dec 9, 2020 - The 20th edition of one of the most important IT conferences in the region, "WinDays", for the first time in a virtual setting, has attracted several hundred participants, and it has underscored that Croatia has a great chance of becoming recognizable in the world for artificial intelligence (AI).

The WinDays conference is taking place December 7-9, and it covers various current technological topics and trends, including artificial intelligence, serverless technology, GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation), cognitive services, the Internet of things (IoT), and the fintech industry.

It was said that IoT technology was in the maturity phase, that it was going in too many directions and that it was necessary to standardize and regulate the IoT. Companies must have to be educated to be able to identify problems they can solve with the help of IoT and those they cannot.

As for GDPR, it was said that even two years after its introduction, many companies had not harmonized their operation with it, and it is estimated that only in about five years everyone will achieve harmonization, although there is already a lot of talk in the European Union of GDPR 2.0 coming soon.

Several panelists, including representatives of some of the most successful telecoms, IT companies, and startups in Croatia discussed the benefits of digital business transformation, as well as Croatia's position regarding artificial intelligence, and the conclusion was that it was a huge opportunity for Croatia.

It was said that Croatia was one of the few European countries where a free online course, "Elements of AI", was available, and so far over 12,000 people have applied for it.

It was also said that investments in the technology sector had been growing for the past year or two, which also shows that Croatia could be a relevant player on the global AI scene.

The fintech industry was another topic discussed at the WinDays conference, and it was said that banks and insurance companies were ripe for disruption and that many startups were working on developing services that would disrupt the industry.

It was added that money was available through investment angels and venture capital funds which, encouraged by the success and growth of Croatia's IT industry in 2020, were ready to increasingly invest in Croatia.

Banks and insurance companies are increasingly behaving like startups and innovating their processes, that is, introducing personalized services supported by technology.

The WinDays20 conference ends on Wednesday.

ZAGREB, July 27, 2020 - Croatia's health and IT sectors have developed and on Monday presented the Croatian version of the Stop COVID-19 app which uses temporary and anonymous data to inform users about exposure to coronavirus.

The app is available for Android and Apple mobile phones and uses Bluetooth technology.

The success of the app is based on the conscientious and solidary participation of citizens, said Health Minister Vili Beros.

After the pandemic is over, it will no longer be possible to use the app, which is secure and uses temporary and anonymous data.

The app's cross-border interoperability has also been ensured.

The app was designed under a government decision by the APIS IT agency for support to information systems and technologies.

"All data exchanged between two devices, i.e. two persons, is recorded only on mobile devices," said Sasa Bilic, chairman of APIS IT's management board.

Every user is informed anonymously that they have been in contact with infected persons sometime over the past 14 days. Users will be notified by text if the contact has been high, medium or low risk based on precisely defined parameters.

"We took distance into account. A text about a high risk is when a person has been two meters away for more than 15 minutes over the past 48 hours," said epidemiologist Tomislav Benjak.

The user will receive a text saying they have been in high-risk contact, to stay home and contact their family doctor. Texts about medium and low-risk contacts are created similarly.

A dozen EU member states (Austria, the Czech Republic, Italy, Latvia, Germany, Poland, Denmark, Ireland, France, and Hungary) have designed mobile apps to track contacts and inform users about exposure to COVID-19.

Bozinovic: App is secure, has all the necessary certificates

Interior Minister Davor Bozinovic, who heads the national COVID-19 response team, said the Stop COVID-19 app had all the necessary certificates.

"The European Commission said the health authorities in each member state should manage the app. Simply put, it's communication between two mobile phones. The person who possibly receives a text that they have been near an infected person doesn't know who this person is, and the infected person can activate the app only if they want to," he told press.

No third party can know anything about that communication, he said. "It couldn't be more secure. After all, the app has all the necessary certificates."