Question marks surrounding supply levels and quality have led PPE to dominate headlines throughout the current COVID-19 pandemic. Now, the UK Border Force has issued a vigilance warning to the supply chain industry, after identifying a growing trend for criminals to take advantage of the situation, pushing counterfeit PPE and medicines into circulation. In a bid to support global efforts to help front-line health workers get adequate access to PPE, Australian cyber security company Cryptoloc, which recently launched in the UK, has developed a product to help combat the distribution of counterfeit Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), by ensuring products are not tampered with during any stage of the supply chain. The company is offering the use of its this security product, Cryptoloc QA, to governments across the globe. Cryptoloc QA security works by applying a patented, scannable QA code, containing both product information and the batch code, to products. Each code uses dual RSA 2048 and AES 256 encryption, meaning they cannot be copied or altered. Customs agents and hospitals can therefore verify the PPE meets all the required standards, simply by scanning the code using a free smartphone app for iOS and Android. Rick Fuller, Head of Europe, Cryptoloc, comments: “When it comes to the problem of counterfeit goods, one of the main risks is distributors tampering with a consignment between manufacture and delivery, to boost profit or cut corners. Our QA label, which can be added to individual boxes or entire containers, has been designed to provide reassurance that no counterfeit goods can slip their way into the shipment undetected. “It is only a matter of time before counterfeit PPE ultimately ends up in a hospital and it is absolutely vital that more is done to protect both the NHS and the public and prevent this from happening. The consequences of PPE entering the NHS supply chain could be catastrophic, leading at best to dangerous delays with procuring replacement items if the counterfeits are detected, and at worst resulting in deaths.” He continues: “We’ve developed a product that we believe can help, by eradicating fakes, and are keen to offer this solution to governments across the globe immediately. To help facilitate this we have setup a 24-hour COVID-19 response team who can arrange rapid implementations. “Today, we invite relevant government bodies to contact us for assistance as soon as possible- there has never been a more health-critical time to implement such a product and we are on standby provide rapid help." For more information, contact Cryptoloc’s COVID-19 response team here: https://www.cryptoloc.com/covid-19-counterfeit-ppe-prevention