Although some flights overseas have resumed, the spread of COVID-19 has been detected in many cases, with passengers having to quarantine when they reach their location. One solution being floated is the concept of an ‘immunity passport’ for those who want to travel.
Onfido, a UK-based technology company specialising in facial biometric certification, floated the concept as part of a proposal to the UK government, according to the BBC.
Travellers might have to prove their immunity to COVID-19 in the future.
These passports would be digital records, where citizens can upload a document like their ID, take a selfie to verify their identity and receive an immunity certificate which would be a code on their phone they could scan to enter buildings, airports and other public spaces.
This is Onfido’s proposal, but the UK government have asked for similar ones from a host of other technology companies as well.
This is not the only government to consider or even adopt such a system. According to Reuters, in China their health check app is used to make sure a person is symptom-free before getting onto the subway or checking into a hotel.
However, these immunity passports have not been without criticism. This is especially because the ability to gain immunity from COVID-19 has not been definitively proven. Effective and trustworthy antibody tests have not been developed to the level which is required to initiate immunity status operations.
Emirates was the first airline to attempt antibody tests of passengers before boarding, but this was withdrawn after it was found that only 30% of tests were accurate.
In addition, creating restrictions on movement based on government collated data has serious implications and could result in discrimination concerns. Regulating such a scheme globally for travel would also cause problems between different countries.
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