COVID Certificate Verification -Solution To Counter Pandemic Frauds

Emily Daniel
DataDrivenInvestor
Published in
4 min readSep 22, 2021

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Increased worldwide demand and a shortage in supply for COVID-19 vaccine have worsened the current health crisis. The International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) has raised concerns regarding the risks associated with illegal production, distribution, and sale of COVID-19 test certificates and vaccinations. In August 2021, the multinational pharmaceutical company Pfizer confirmed that because of the absence of COVID certificate verification, anti-wrinkle products had been erroneously used as vaccines and traded for up to US $2,500 in Mexico and Poland. A few months back, police arrested a man in China for doing a US $2.8 million scams that sold 58,000 COVID-19 vaccines with mineral water and saline solution.

COVID Vaccine Certificates — Bearer of Frauds

Vaccine certificates that are a necessity nowadays for travellers are vulnerable to scams. The personalized and swift changes in policies between borders are problematic for customs to corroborate COVID-19 certificates. Lack of COVID certificate verification also eases the proliferation of false vaccine documents.

The dark web took full advantage of fraudulent COVID-19 vaccines and certificates. At UAE and UK airports Fake negative COVID certificates have been found from travellers. The security officials at the Zimbabwe airport arrested two fraudsters for selling forged COVID-19 certificates.

The COVID certificates do not provide a guarantee to reduce pandemic-related scams. As the security protocols around the coronavirus certificate are weak, the fraudulent activities have increased. Sometimes the major perpetrators might be the confidants within industries themselves and organized scam networks.

No Standard Model for Verify Vaccine Certificate

Paper-based vaccine certificates are prone to alteration and forgery. Digital COVID certificate verification can effectively minimize the limitations associated with paper-based records. In wake of the situation, WHO designed a vaccine certificate and developed a global trust framework for validations around the globe. Somehow due to uncertain reasons as countries around the globe find it difficult to adhere to international level regulations, the authorities discarded the global trust framework and traded them with guidance documents.

Perils of Lacking Coronavirus Certificate Verification

By not employing the COVID certificate verification, the increase in fraud related to COVID certificates is adding to the already existing worldwide dilemma of bogus medicines. According to research by the World Health Organization, at least 1 in 10 medical products that circulate across middle-income countries in Africa, the Americas, Europe, and Asia are of substandard quality, leading to potentially fatal consequences.

The danger is not only limited to medication. There are reports which highlight that fraudulent COVID-19 vaccination certificates are being sold digitally in Australia for up to $120. Some fraudulent sites even asserted that they could make an arrangement for doctors to input fake vaccination records into the AIR (Australian Immunization Registry).

Humans’ Take on Covid Certificates

Since the arrival of vaccines, people have been divided into two groups. One supported the idea of getting vaccinated while the other group disliked it. Opponents of COVID certificate verification believed that the digital certificate vaccine verification will exacerbate global inequities and violate the rights of the most susceptible in society.

For instance, in Russia, access to medical services is fastened to digital certificate vaccine verification. Catalogued scams have had a practical day and the fake certificates were everywhere in the market as the demands of vaccine certificates escalated.

Digital Vaccine Certificate Verification — The Perfect Response To Frauds

Online means are being employed to minimize COVID certificate verification frauds and ensure secured travel. Digital vaccine certificate verification sets the bar high for transnational COVID certificate appliances for public use. The COVID certificate consists of a digital signature and a QR code to prevent counterfeiting. These can be displayed either on paper or mobile devices. The COVID certification verification works as digitized evidence that the individual has either been vaccinated, acquired a negative test result, or recovered from COVID-19. The information remains confidential as the verification only identifies the steps the individual has gone through, i.e. keeping the details intact.

Many regions of the world are evaluating the ins and outs of COVID certificate verification and are thinking of making it a standard for their own systems.

Summing it up

As the number of COVID-related scams is skyrocketing, the need for COVID certificate verification is increasing. Perpetrators are employing sophisticated techniques to dodge vaccine passport verification checks. The important information stolen from COVID certificates is sold on black websites to gain high monetary benefits.

The only solution to put a full stop to vaccine-related scams is the COVID certificate verification. Digital vaccine certificate verification authenticates whether the person is actually vaccinated and thus does not possess any threat in spreading the disease.

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Emily is a tech writer, with expertise in entrepreneurship, and business marketing. She has a knack for technology, & loves to dig out the latest trends in AI.