Security Experts Warn Why It May Not Be Wise To Share Vaccine Card Photos Online

Understandably, people want to show everyone that they have already been vaccinated and gotten a key step in being protected from the dreaded coronavirus. And while it would initially seem harmless, some experts warn that it could be detrimental, particularly in the area of identity fraud.

Images or even videos of people getting the COVID-19 jab have grown over social media as of late. That includes showing the type of vaccine, date received and batch number of the dose. It is a way to show the world and encourage people to get vaccinated. However, data scientist and McAfee fellow Raj Samani has warned that doing so makes you vulnerable to scams and identity theft.

"We know there are criminals actively selling country-specific vaccine cards. There's clearly a burgeoning market for it,” Samani said to Tyla. "It's a logical conclusion that criminals could be using social media to take this information, gathering it to sell on, and that maybe we shouldn't be posting pictures of our vaccine cards online."

True enough, opportunists are trying to pull fast ones on civilians and are aware that the demand for vaccines has grown. In fact, according to the Telegraph, scammers have been charging between £5 and £28 for false documentation.

Given these scenarios, it may be in the best interest of the public to keep their posts limited to people they know to prevent falling prey to scammers. This is particularly important to people, especially travelers.

Beyond that, Samani urges everyone to be more attentive to the things they share online. That includes photo selfies, which would make it easier for no-gooders to get pieces of information and use it as part of their identity theft intentions.

This is seconded by Cybersecurity expert Tracy Cunningham, who works at Check Point. He believes that online safety needs to be studied more especially with social media now becoming a big factor in everyday life.