In 2022, more than 100 fake COVID certificates were found at the border
Since the beginning of the year, using SafeBorder software, border guards have checked COVID certificates from almost 240 thousand people who arrived in Ukraine
In order to prevent the spread of coronavirus infection, employees of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine continue to check documents on a negative test result or recovery from the disease, as well as COVID certificates confirming vaccination of citizens. To do this, at checkpoints on the state border, border guards use electronic devices with SafeBorder software.
Only since the beginning of the year, using this software, border guards have checked COVID certificates from almost 240 thousand people who arrived in Ukraine. As a result of the check, 114 fake certificates were found. Note that for the use of knowingly forged documents, criminal liability is provided for under Part 4 of Art. 358 of the Criminal Code “Forgery of documents, seals, stamps and forms, sale or use of forged documents, seals, stamps”.
Recall, the State Border Service of Ukraine began to apply electronic verification of COVID certificates confirming vaccination of citizens at the end of August last year. This was made possible thanks to the joint work of the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Digital Transformation, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the State Border Guard Service to implement the decisions of the Government of Ukraine. Eventually, border guards received electronic devices with SafeBorder software. It provides for the possibility of automated verification of the validity of the document and its belonging to the relevant person when crossing the border of Ukraine. Each COVID certificate has a unique electronic ID and QR code.
To carry out the check, border guards scan the QR code of the certificate provided by citizens with the device and receive confirmation of the status of the document on the screen of the electronic device.
To date, dozens of countries are connected to the trust network of digital COVID certificates, including both EU and non-member countries.
It is worth noting that the software is constantly updated depending on the expansion of the list of countries or refinements to improve the operation of the system.
Once again, we emphasize that you should not use fake certificates both for entering Ukraine and for traveling abroad. If such a fake is detected by law enforcement officers of the country of destination, then the violators will also be liable, according to the law of the country to which they are heading.
State Border Guard Service of Ukraine
