Police cracked a fake Covid-19 health pass scheme on Telegram

Italian police blocked several groups on the mobile messaging app Telegram on Monday, where users can buy fake Covid-19 health passes to access a range of services and leisure activities.

The so-called green pass is a digital or paper certificate that shows whether someone has received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, tested negative or recently recovered from the virus.

The Mario Draghi government adopted the pass in the face of the Delta variant in an attempt to speed up vaccination, but it sparked protests from some Italians who said it trampled on freedom and compulsory vaccination An indirect way.

Starting from August 6, gyms, swimming pools, museums, cinemas, and indoor dining in restaurants will be required. From September 1st, university students and travel by train, plane, ship and coach will also be mandatory.

Telegram accuses WhatsApp of lying to its 2 billion users

The police said in a statement that they have shut down 32 Telegram groups operating across the country and provided thousands of subscribers with up to 500 euros (588 U.S. dollars) in cryptocurrency or fake passes for online shopping vouchers.

Four people were filed for investigation on suspicion of fraud and forgery.

Since the outbreak last February, Italy has recorded 128,220 Covid-19 deaths, which is the second highest death toll in Europe and the eighth highest in the world. To date, it has recorded 4.4 million cases.

However, even if the number of hospitalizations rises again, many citizens are still reluctant to be vaccinated.

The latest data show that about 66% of Italians have received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, and about 55% have been fully vaccinated. According to the Ministry of Health, about 20 million green certificates have been downloaded among about 60 million people.