Covid 19 coronavirus: Subway worker 'harassed' woman customer after getting details for contact tracing

A Subway employee allegedly harassed a customer by using her coronavirus contact tracing details to message her.

An Auckland woman, who has been identified only as "Jess", said she felt "gross" and "uncomfortable" after a male Subway employee used her contact tracing details to message her after she filled in a form at a North Shore restaurant.

Subway confirmed that the employee has been suspended pending an investigation.

Jess told MediaWorks she was asked to fill her name, home address, email address and phone number on to a form provided by the restaurant.

Shortly after her visit, Jess said she received an email, a text and requests on Facebook and Instagram from the man who'd served her.

"I felt pretty gross, he made me feel really uncomfortable," she said. "He's contacting me, I didn't ask him to do that, I don't want that."

Jess added that she felt "lucky" to have other people at home because the employee now knows her address.

"I'd feel really, really scared [if I lived alone]," she said. "Even now I feel a bit creeped out and vulnerable."

Subway said the employee will be suspended pending an investigation.

They added that they will be implementing a digitised contact-tracing system, which will only be accessible should the Government make a request to trace someone.

In a statement, a spokesperson said: "All Subway franchisees have received refresher training about their responsibility for management of personal information, following this complaint.

"As part of Subway's ongoing response to Covid-19, from Wednesday, a new digital contact tracing system was introduced at all restaurants ... information will be held securely for the purposes of contact tracing, only accessed in response to government contact tracing requests."

New Zealand has only 1147 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, most of which came from overseas, according to the Ministry of Health.

The ministry has issued a nationwide contact-tracing drive to warn people who come into contact with someone who may have contracted the illness.

There have been just 21 deaths from the virus in New Zealand.