Vaccination passport, here are the examples of China and Israel
Vaccine passport experiments are already in place in Israel and China. The EU will present its Green Digital Pass proposal on March 17. Chiara Rossi's article
China launches the vaccination passport, the first country in the world to do so.
Beijing has launched a digital Covid-19 vaccination certificate for its citizens planning cross-border travel.
While vaccines are being rolled out globally, China and Israel have already introduced certificates identifying vaccinated people. Despite growing concerns about data privacy.
On March 17, the European Union will also present its proposal for vaccine passports under pressure from tourism-dependent southern European countries .
In Italy, the Privacy Guarantor believes there must be a national law also to avoid discrimination between those who have had the vaccine and those who have not. In addition to avoiding forward escapes of the individual Regions as it was for the Immuni app.
Full details on China and Israel vaccine passport examples.
THE CHINESE DIGITAL CERTIFICATE
The certificate issued by China will contain details of the holder's Covid-19 vaccination and coronavirus test results, the Chinese Foreign Ministry's Department of Consular Affairs said on its website.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Sunday that the goal of the certificate is to obtain mutual verification of information such as nucleic acid testing and vaccination.
THROUGH THE WECHAT PLATFORM
The certificate, digital or paper, which proves the immunization of the holder, is available for Chinese citizens who will request it through the WeChat platform.
Its purpose is to "help promote global economic recovery and facilitate cross-border travel," Beijing's foreign ministry explained.
NOT OBLIGATORY (AT THE MOMENT)
The passport is currently not mandatory and is the first of its kind issued in the world.
ENCRYPTED INFORMATION
At a press conference, the spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Zhao Lijian, clarified that the information is encrypted in a QR code that can be verified, decrypted and read by the competent authorities when necessary.
BEIJING AIMS THE INSTITUTION OF A "RECOGNITION OF MECHANISMS" ON HEALTH CODES
In addition, he said Beijing is willing to discuss with other countries the establishment of a "recognition of mechanisms" on health codes in relation to "current concerns" in the context of the pandemic. So as to facilitate "the issuing of visas and travel between countries, thus contributing to the resumption of meetings in a safer and more orderly manner".
In China, a QR code system is already used to regulate access to transport and other public places, through apps that track the movements of citizens and produce a "green" code if the person concerned has not been in close contact with infected people or have not traveled to areas considered outbreaks.
THE ISRAELI GREEN PASSPORT
The Israeli vaccine passport was issued on 21 February.
Israel has already administered five million vaccines. Over 3.8 million of the 9.3 million Israelis, more than 40%, have received both doses of the vaccine. Thanks to this, a few days ago it was decided to reopen bars, restaurants, museums and clubs. However, many of these services are only available to those who can prove they have been vaccinated or recovered after contracting Covid. That is by showing the so-called "green passport".
Note that the Israeli green passport refers to moving freely in the nation, not crossing borders.
HOW DOES IT WORK
Vaccinated people can download an app that displays their "green pass" when asked to show it. The app can also show evidence that someone has recovered from covid-19. The Israeli government says this option will be coming to the app soon, which will be especially useful for children too young to receive the vaccine. Officials hope that the benefits of the green pass will encourage vaccination among hesitant Israelis, many of whom are young.
THE PRIVACY ISSUE
"The green pass is also a potential privacy nightmare," Orr Dunkelman, a professor of computer science at the University of Haifa and a member of the Privacy Israel board, told Mit Review . According to Orr Dunkelman "the pass reveals information that those who check credentials do not need to know, such as the date a user recovered from covid or received a vaccine". "The app also uses an outdated cryptographic library that is more vulnerable to security breaches," the professor pointed out. In fact, the app is not open source, no third-party expert can verify if these concerns are founded.
READY THE EU PROPOSAL
On March 17, the EU Commission will present the legislative proposal to establish the digital passport. The EU is in fact working on a "digital green pass" to allow its citizens who have been vaccinated to move freely within and outside the European borders.
“The pass should make life easier for Europeans. The goal is to allow them to gradually move safely in the EU or abroad, for work or tourism “.
The announcement by the president of the European Commission of the legislative proposal to establish the “Digital Green Pass” has aroused mixed reactions from EU governments.
Tourism-dependent countries such as Greece and Spain have stepped up their pressure in recent weeks in an attempt to save the 2021 summer season. Among the countries holding back, considering the discussion premature, are Germany, Holland and Belgium.
ITALY READY TO ALIGN
In Italy, Health Minister Roberto Speranza explained that the country will move with the EU. At the beginning of March, the Italian Privacy Guarantor underlined the need for a national law for a vaccination pass. Letter 150, the think tank that brings together about 300 academics, is in favor of the hypothesis of a vaccine passport, since – they say – the solution can start to restart the country and the economy. The group of experts suggests using the health card which is not “liable to falsification” and linking it to a regional database.
THE OPINION OF WHO
Finally, just this week came a brake on travel vaccination passports from the World Health Organization (WHO).
A WHO emergency officer, Michael Ryan, said Covid-19's so-called "vaccine passports" should not be used for international travel. " The WHO manager cited in fact "numerous concerns including ethical considerations on the fact that vaccines are not readily available globally".
In a press briefing earlier this week, he said there are "concrete practical and ethical considerations" for countries evaluating the use of certification as a condition for travel, adding that for now the UN health agency not recommend.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/innovazione/passaporto-vaccinale-ecco-gli-esempi-di-cina-e-israele/ on Wed, 10 Mar 2021 14:43:21 +0000.