International digital health firm Circle Pass Enterprises has contracted with technology firm VST to integrate its VCode technology into biometric “passports.” The passports, dubbed Covi-Pass, can be accessed via mobile phone and are going to be used to show an individual’s testing status for Covid19. The app is going to be used to grant or deny access to public locations based on an individual’s testing status.
Information on Covi-Pass can be accessed by authorities remotely so that authorities do not have to conduct face-to-face encounters with individuals.
Covi-Pass will use the same proprietary technology from VST that addresses issues like illegal mining and counterfeiting. Older generation technology like barcodes or QR codes are vulnerable to hacking, VST says. Its technology makes it inherently safer and VST is therefore better positioned to handle larger contracts like those signed with governments.
VST has already contracted with the UK government and has agreements with 15 other countries to implement Covi-Pass including Italy, Portugal, France, India, the US, Canada, Sweden, Spain, South Africa, Mexico, United Arab Emirates and the Netherlands.