Quebec has started revoking fake vaccine passports one week after investigation launched

Quebec has already revoked fake vaccine passports as it begins to crack down on fraudsters trying to bypass the public health measure.

The Ministry of Health and Social Services (MSSS) confirmed to CTV News that nine phoney QR codes have been revoked so far since it launched an anti-corruption probe into alleged fraud schemes, and that "sanctions will be applied."

"The computerized tools allowing this revocation are in operation and QR codes have indeed been revoked." a ministry spokesperson said in an email statement on Friday.

A ministerial decree issued earlier this month allows a vaccine passport to be revoked if the government has reasonable grounds to believe it was unlawfully obtained, "notably by means of false or misleading statements."

The ministry said it wouldn’t publicize its data on QR code revocations in order to not interfere with the ongoing investigation.

Quebec’s anti-corruption unit, Unité permanente anticorruption (UPAC), launched an investigation on Jan. 19 into "various fraudulent schemes" to make and distribute fake vaccination passports.

The following day, Health Minister Christian Dubé said when restaurants reopen — which is scheduled for Monday — they will be able to flag fake vaccine passports and potentially prevent people caught using them from entering.

Mathieu Galarneau, a UPAC spokesperson, said the agency was investigating a "large number" of reports of fraudulent passports since late fall.