D-Test: Decentralized Application for Preventing Fake COVID-19 Test Certificate Scam by Blockchain

ABSTRACT

More than 6 million people have lost their lives due to COVID-19 across the world (Ghatkopar in Fake negative COVID-19 certificate scam unearthed, 2019, [2];WHO (World Health Organization) in https//covid19.who.int/table, [3]). Recently, fake COVID-19 test certificate scams have spiked up drastically and become one of the reasons for the spread of COVID-19. In light of the current scenario, this paper proposes a decentralized approach called, "D-Test” for COVID-19 testing which allows the hospital and the general public to register themselves at a common platform which follows the concept of CIA triad (Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability) and allows users to register without any fear of data breach. This platform registers users based on smart contract and enables the user to do the following once registered successfully (a) Book Testing Slot, (b) Find nearby registered testing laboratories, and c) Generate the COVID-19 reports which could be imported and exported as and when required by the user. This has a higher value of trust because the source of the report can be traced back since usage of Blockchain prevents the likelihood of data tampering by an entity. This framework could help the government(s) keep track of distributing authentic COVID-19 testing certificates, prevent the fake COVID-19 testing certificate scams, and will speed up the process of verifying the users' test reports, thereby saving lives of many citizens around the world. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.