Never mind reddit or somewhere. It’s right here in THIS thread at Post #33:
They’ll know at once that such cards are fake when they stick it under the Ultramaroon Chromatograph Scanner and see that it has no bamboo fibers.
Early May?!? Who am I, Rip Van Winkle?
So if these cards are so easy to fake, just how are (some) users getting caught?
Poor quality control, for one.
Because some of them are very stupid.
Also, sure, some of them are getting caught. What percentage of those using fake vaxx cards are getting caught? It might be a very low number.
The cards are kind of pointless. There has to be a better way of verifying vaccination status.
New York has the Excelsior Pass, a phone app, which downloads vaccination status from New York State’s vaccination database, which in turn gets its information from the pharmacist or medical facility administering the vaccine. It does the same with COVID test results. I guess it’s not 100% foolproof, but it’s way better than the cards.
New York City has the COVID Safe (or something like that) app, but the only proof of vaccine involved in that is a photo of one’s vaxx card. So it’s kind of pointless.
Also, the whole thing is kind of pointless, at least here in NYC. The city just mandated proof of vaccination for many indoor activities. The law will be enforced about as well as the requirement that masks be worn on the subway, which is to say that it won’t be enforced.
Not bamboo fibers?
I think the discussion of vaccination cards vs paper records over in breaking news is interesting. I don’t want to hijack that thread though.
Maybe we can continue it here?
I think the issue of some people having gotten no card, but only a printout makes things more complicated.
It also means relying on laws against faking federal agency logos won’t work for prosecuting people who get caught.
I also would like to avoid burdening people who did get vaccinated but didn’t get cards.
My preference would be a way to quickly check state registries, and a law against giving false vaccination information, which carries serious penalties based on endangering others.
I don’t think the US is going to implement wide spread, electronic scanning of vaccine passports in public places like in other countries. People are too resistant to that level of surveillance. I don’t think it’s feasible in the USA of 2021 to have restaurants do a real-time scan of a QR code of the patrons to verify if their vaccination status is real or not. Technologically it can be done, but it would be political suicide to try to mandate it and restaurants wouldn’t want to pay for the scanning equipment. States are passing laws making it illegal to even ask for vaccination status. I can’t see how an electronic vaccine passport system gets implemented in this kind of environment.
For public places like stores and restaurants which have a constant stream of random people, I think it’s most feasible to have something that can be visually checked like a vaccine card. It’s best if there were scanning machines which had to be checked before entry, but I can’t see that happening.
For places where people are not transitory, like businesses and schools, the organization can get authorization from the person to check with the state database. It would be more convenient for them to be able to scan a QR code, but they can just do a manual lookup of their employees and students and see if their info is valid. BTW, I just had to do this for my employer. In anticipation of going back to the office, I had to upload my vaccine status. I uploaded a picture of my CDC card to a “vaccine wallet app” my company has and the system did an automated lookup to validate it (about 3 minutes). A QR code would have made this easier for them, but they were still able to do it from a CDC card. I think they also have humans to do lookups if the system is not able to read the upload (like with an unusual printout). Presenting fake info would likely be discovered and lead to being fired or expelled.
Although I wish we had vaccine passports, I can’t see that being implemented. I think the most feasible solution to provide the most wide-spread proof of vaccination status in America is with the CDC paper cards that are validated through visual inspection. Any kind of electronic scanning will face a lot of resistance, which will mean it’s not likely to be actually implemented. There’s certainly a lot of security problems with the CDC cards, but at least they are actual cards and not just regular paper that everyone has in their printer at home.
I’d like at least a voluntary national vax passport option, coordinated with the other countries that are requiring evidence of vaccination to enter.
Arenas and stadiums around here are starting to require the Clear Health Pass app, as I said in the other thread.
Here in Switzerland, there’s an app to read QR codes, which can be loaded on iPhones or Android, so there’s no extra cost to the restaurants. Since September 13th, only people with certificates (tested, recovered or vaccinated) may eat inside restaurants. This means that all restaurants with indoor seating are scanning the QR codes of their customers.
Many restaurants have been using some sort of tablet for years for taking orders and for processing credit card payments. Since the pandemic started, many restaurants put their menus on line, so the customers only have to scan the QR code at the the table. This is easier for the restaurant as they don’t have to sanitize the menus.
Of course, if QR codes are not already part of one’s daily business, there’s a bit of a learning curve. But it’s relatively short, especially for the people who already have smart phones.
If the restaurant requires their employees to have certificates, or even vaccinated, this means the restaurant is now able to operate as they did before the pandemic, with the small inconvenience of checking the QR codes.
One of the restaurants near us even decided to set aside space for a testing center next to the restaurant, so customers could get tested, wait 30 minutes (approximate waiting time for the antigen test) and then eat at the restaurant.
For the restaurants, being able to operate as normal is definitely worth the small amount of inconvenience.
And if they don’t do the checks? They can be fined heavily or get shut down.
Stores are different. Masks are still mandated, so there’s no need to check QR codes. People don’t need to remove their masks for shopping, as they do for restaurants and watching movies (most theaters make a lot of money on concessions).
That’s me. My “card” is printed on normal 8.5x11 copy paper. I’ve never had to show it to get in anywhere, but I worry that it will be rejected.
I volunteered at a mass vaccination clinic a few times. My role included filling out the cards. I was very careful, and I think I did not make any mistakes, but it’s always possible.
There was, however, on messy handoff where I was helping one person, a supervisor stepped in to help the group that was in a car, and then the supervisor left without telling me or the vaccinator I was working with that they didn’t finish with that car. It drove off to the waiting area. One of the waiting area monitors came up and said everyone in the car had blank vaccination cards. Ugh. (I went and filled them out.) So even in places that had cards available, some people could wind up without a properly filled out card.
The apps that verify info with the state sound great. So you’d set up with the app, have some lag time while they verify, but then have a verified result to show along with ID. If it also can also give a printout, then folks without smart phones could also use it, with nothing more than use of a computer and printer at the library. There will have to be a list of trusted apps, as I’m sure there would be a market for ones that didn’t actually verify.
Another option would be states themselves making it very easy for an individual to pull up a yes/no and date vaccination record for themselves. Set up username and password, pull it up to show status.
Yeah, as others have said, you may want to contact the place you were vaccinated to see if you can get a card, as it would probably make it easier for you. But it shows why we can’t just say everyone who is vaxxed has a card. There has to be another way to show that you are vaccinated.
Yes, same here - I plan on visiting the health center where I got the vax and paper and see what they say.
California does this. I imagine at least some other states do too.
I think I already posted this in this thread or a related thread, but here it is again: If you got vaxxed in California, go to:
to set up your sign-in. (You have to give your first name, last name, date-of-birth, mobile phone number or e-mail address, and give yourself a 4-digit PIN.) You get an official-looking printable page with all the relevant information and a HUGE QR code.
I keep a print-out in my car in case it comes in handy. My HMO that gave the shot also provides a printable record that I also printed and keep in my car. This is all in addition to the official wallet-card-that-doesn’t-quite-fit-in-your-wallet that I got (but at least it’s on proper card stock).