Google is using location data gathered from mobiles to help authorities verify the effectiveness of social isolation policies. On its website this Friday morning, Google announced the release of its COVID-19 Community Mobility Reports.

With user location obtained in 131 different countries, Google generates PDFs with the data it has collected. In some countries, data can be search through states. The database considers the median value, for the corresponding day of the week, during the 5-week period Jan 3–Feb 6, 2020.

Each report contains information about movement patterns in six categories: Retail and recreation, grocery and pharmacy, parks, transit stations, workplaces and residences. The report use data from people who have opted in to storing their location history to help illustrate the degree to which people are adhering to government instructions to shelter in place and working from home. The full report is available here.