New York Attorney General Letitia James issued an alert, warning consumers about the sale or distribution of fake COVID-19 vaccination cards. James said, "Not only do fake and fraudulently-completed vaccination cards violate federal and state laws and the public trust, but they also put the health of our communities at risk and potentially prolong this public health crisis."
Earlier this year, the National Association of Attorneys General, on behalf of a coalition of state attorneys general, sent a letter to Twitter, Shopify, and eBay, alleging that the platforms are being used to market and sell blank or fraudulently completed COVID-19 vaccine cards. NAAG said, "We are deeply concerned about this use of your platforms to spread false and misleading information regarding COVID vaccines. 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."
NAAG asked the platforms to take immediate action against the deceptive marketing and sales of fake vaccine cards on their platforms, which should include:
- Monitoring platforms for ads or links marketing or selling, or otherwise indicating the availability of, blank or fraudulently completed vaccine cards;
- Promptly taking down ads or links identified through that monitoring; and
- Preserving records, such as the content, username, and actual user identity, pertaining to any such ads or links.
The coalition was led by the attorneys general of North Carolina and Tennessee, and the letter was also signed by the attorneys general of Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Northern Mariana Islands, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, U.S. Virgin Islands, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
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