'Blockchain Technology Applied' COVID-19 Vaccination Certificates Issued from Tomorrow... Prevention of Forgery

Supplementing Paper Certificates' Drawbacks with Tamper-Proofing and Minimal Personal Data Usage

On the 24th, arrivals are waiting for a dedicated bus at Terminal 1 arrival hall of Incheon International Airport. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ji-hee] COVID-19 vaccination certificates that are tamper-proof using blockchain technology will be issued.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) announced on the 14th that it will issue electronic COVID-19 vaccination certificates starting from the 15th. Until now, the government has provided services issuing vaccination certificates either as printed documents or through electronic document wallets, but the new electronic COVID-19 vaccination certificate will fundamentally prevent forgery and tampering, and certify vaccination status using minimal personal information, thereby addressing the shortcomings of paper certificates.

The newly launched electronic COVID-19 vaccination certificate applies blockchain and decentralized identity verification (DID) technologies to prevent forgery and verify authenticity. The blockchain operated directly by the KDCA records only the public key information necessary to verify the authenticity of the electronic vaccination certificate, and is designed not to store personal information such as resident registration numbers. Additionally, the blockchain implements a consensus algorithm between information storage nodes without using cryptocurrency (tokens), so no fees are incurred when using the blockchain.

Furthermore, the KDCA, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Ministry of the Interior and Safety’s National Information Resources Service, and Korea Health Information Service have each installed distributed blockchain information storage to enhance the reliability of the blockchain.

When presenting the electronic vaccination certificate via QR code, verifiers can only confirm the minimum vaccination-related information. Verification records cannot be accessed by third parties.

Vaccinated individuals will be able to download the certificate issuance and authentication application from Google Play Store or Apple App Store starting from the 15th.

To this end, the KDCA signed a business agreement with Blockchain Labs, a private venture company possessing blockchain technology. Through this agreement, Blockchain Labs will apply its self-developed and patented consensus algorithm to the electronic vaccination certificate. They also agreed to mutually cooperate in providing technical support for the construction and operation of the electronic vaccination certificate issuance system in the future.

Jung Eun-kyung, Commissioner of the KDCA, stated, “This electronic COVID-19 vaccination certificate was promoted to fundamentally prevent forgery and tampering and to complement the shortcomings of paper certificates,” adding, “We will do our best to ensure that vaccinated individuals’ electronic vaccination certificates are safely managed.”