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Vendors are cashing in on people desperate to leapfrog the line—or falsely certify which they got the shot.Security researchers have experienced a spike in listings on dark web marketplaces in recent weeks. The sites are advertising from vaccine doses to falsified vaccine certifications and darkode reborn (new post from Toxichousing) negative test results. Currently, a lot more than 1,200 listings are offering a variety of vaccines, including Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca, Sputnik, and Sinopharm.
Investigations by researchers at security firm Check Point have been monitoring the sites for Covid-19-related activity since January, and they report a three-fold escalation in such activity during the last three months. It’s unclear if the doses are legitimate, and even when these were, there’s no guarantee that the vials have now been stored at the right temperature, potentially rendering them useless.
The other day, Check Point researchers located in Israel attempted to purchase the Sinopharm vaccine from one vendor, said Ekram Ahmed, a spokesperson for the company. “We tried to negotiate and choose the Chinese vaccine through one of many vendors,” he told Ars. The team messaged the vendor, who directed them to carry on the negotiations on Telegram. Once there, the seller provided reassurances that the vaccine doses were legitimate. The researchers sent $500 to a Bitcoin wallet, and while they’ve received a FedEx shipping label, they’ve yet to get the shipment.
Dark web vendors are probably doing better business selling falsified vaccine cards and negative test results. “Lately, we’re seeing more vaccination certificates being offered” than vaccines, Ahmed said. “It’s probably a two-to-one ratio.”
With COVID-19 testing becoming more widespread, the purchase price for negative test results is only $25. Vaccination cards are harder ahead by and are available for more, around $200. These certificates are becoming passports of sorts, allowing people a freedom of movement they haven’t enjoyed in months. The European Union is in the act of creating a “digital green certificate” that they hope to roll out by June to allow its citizens and residents to travel across borders. In the US, evidence of vaccination could grant people access to certain venues, and employers may require it of their employees to go back to the workplace.The researchers have alerted Europol to the listing and are contacting others today.the Check Point spokesperson, stated that the sellers they contacted on dark web marketplaces were hoping to create long-term relationships making use of their customers. The mark market, he said, “are folks on the ground, individuals who are trying to spread and sell at the neighborhood level in bulk.”
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