Here’s why people say they’re using ‘Are You Dead?’ and apps like it

A person holds a phone that displays the “Are You Dead?” app in Paris on Jan. 22. Felice Rosa/Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images

Felice Rosa/Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images

Each day, after feeding his cat and tidying up his home, Johnny Miller has one more task left on his to-do list: confirm on his phone that he is indeed still alive.

He does this through a Chinese app called Sileme, which is Mandarin for “Are You Dead?” Its function is in its morbid name: Users check in with the app daily. If they miss a number of check-ins, the app

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