The COVID-19 pandemic has been raging for several months now and will likely continue for months to come. Amid this ongoing crisis, people need resources to stay as safe as they can for as long as they can. Data science and its related technologies are enabling such actions, playing an essential role in global safety. Times of hardship often serve as proving grounds for systems that people have boasted about in calmer days. The COVID-19 pandemic is no exception, and data science has more than proved its value. Data, and more importantly, the way people use it, is shaping and refining approaches to COVID-19 safety.