Christine Macqueen
The coronavirus crisis continues to wreak havoc on the lives of citizens and the economy in Scotland. The singular challenge for the Scottish Government now is how to effectively manage the continued spread of Covid-19 while progressively returning to something resembling ‘normal life’. There is no easy answer to this question, but it is becoming apparent better approaches to managing its spread must be found.
Across the UK, officials are still heavily relying on the blunt instrument of lockdown to control the virus. The extreme disruption this causes to lives and livelihoods cannot be underestimated. As new coronavirus cases in Scotland steadily escalate back to heights not seen since the outset of the crisis, and with the end of crucial economic support mechanisms like the furlough scheme in sight, how can Scotland manage the virus, help ensure the safety of citizens and safeguard the economy?
Increasingly, mass testing is being pointed to as part of the answer. Testing at airports, for instance, is being actively considered as a means of avoiding two-week quarantine measures. With the accuracy and speed of Covid tests progressing by leaps and bounds – certain tests are now capable of being analysed in just 12 minutes – it is possible we could soon get a real-time picture of infections across the country.
However, if eventually hundreds of thousands of tests are being carried out per day, as UK ministers have committed to, it is inevitable that fraud will find its way into the system. The urge to falsify test results may prove irresistible. Moreover, not all test providers adhere to the same system of personal protection and data privacy. The integrity of any testing regime, and related track-and-trace efforts, could be fatally compromised without effective security.
The solution to this is to introduce individual secured health passports. In this system, test results are accessible via an individual’s smartphone or in fully secure hard copy counterpart. A tamper-proof QR code is provided to the user which can be scanned to verify testing history and results. Data is privacy protected and secured within the QR code itself, with a digital security seal protected by blockchain to ensure the code is universally and independently verifiable for the desired duration.
The flexibility of health passports offers additional advantages. Verification is possible offline, and data is updateable and revocable; new categories of data can be incrementally added, for example, to validate individual vaccination status when inoculations are eventually rolled-out. They can also be adapted to meet other evolving needs, such as facilitating individualised health approaches.
Moreover, this technology is ready to be deployed right now and is already being used to prove the authenticity of diplomas and qualifications. SICPA is a leading digital security partner to industry and governments worldwide and we are working across the globe to introduce health passport technology in diverse areas like the international shipping industry and sports leagues. Former Prime Minister Tony Blair has made strong calls in recent weeks to see health passports introduced alongside greater testing. Officials could explore integrating health passport capability into Scotland’s new contact-tracing app.
Whatever shape the testing regime takes north of the border, secured health passports should be deployed to ensure the utmost accuracy and robustness. Health passports can safeguard the wellbeing of citizens, restore the economy and release NHS and social care resources to meet other pressing challenges. It is a solution that is needed in Scotland now more than ever.
Christine Macqueen, Director of Corporate Affairs, SICPA
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel