TOPEKA, Kan. – Attorney General Derek Schmidt is fighting the sale of fraudulent COVID-19 vaccination cards.
Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt says he called on the CEOs of three platforms to prevent the sale of fake COVID-19 vaccination cards.
Schmidt said he joined 44 other state and territorial attorneys general who wrote the CEOs of Twitter, eBay and Shopify as reports of fraudulent COVID-19 vaccination cards have begun to appear in online marketplaces.
“The false and deceptive marketing and sales of fake COVID vaccine cards threatens the health of our communities, slows progress in getting our residents protected from the virus, and are a violation of the laws of many states,” the attorneys general wrote. “Multiple states’ laws provide for injunctive relief, damages, penalties, and other remedies for such conduct.”
According to Schmidt, legitimate vaccination cards are given by health care providers when the vaccine is administered. He said those that buy fake cards can have their own information added or can add it themselves, which makes it appears as though they had been vaccinated when they have not.
Schmidt said in their letter, the attorneys general ask the CEOs to:
- Monitor their platforms for ads or links selling blank or fraudulently-completed vaccination cards.
- Promptly take down ads or links that are selling cards.
- Preserve records and information about the ads and the people who were selling them.
Schmidt said his Consumer Protection Division has worked over the past year to protect Kansans from pandemic-related scams, including the sale of bogus cures, price gouging and attempts to steal COVID-19 payment.
