On Tuesday, three suspects in fake Covid vaccination records were arrested by the police.
Following a tip-off from staff of a London NHS Trust, the Met’s Cyber Crime unit was alerted to a “suspicious” pattern. Police responded.
Trois men were taken into police custody on suspicion that they had unauthorised access to computers and plotted to commit fraud via misrepresentation.
Helen Rance (central Cyber Crime Team detective) said, “It’s concerning that individuals might have fraudulently created Covid vaccination certificates during a period when virus levels are rising.”
Three people were arrested on suspicion of making fake Covid records in the NHS. File image
“The Trusts staff did what was right and raised their concerns. This has enabled us to investigate fully the situation.
“I would like to assure the public that the integrity of these systems and no other systems have been hacked beyond the NHS network.
The Omicron variant has been responsible for a dramatic rise in covid cases, especially in London.
Sadiq Khan declared the capital in a state emergency due to the surge of people and asked Londoners not to act without caution.
According to the Met, a man aged 27 and another man aged 23 were both arrested by police for creating false vaccine records.
According to official data, the number of covid hospital admissions has risen by more than three times in one week in London’s Omicron Hotspot.
According to figures from UKHSA, Omicron cases in England rose by 69% compared with the previous day. They went up 9-427 to 23168.
In a seperate investigation a 36-year-old man, also from Ilford, was arrested on suspicion of the same crimes.
A member of staff at a separate NHS trust discovered suspicious records regarding vaccinations on the online system and arrested him.
Staff member raised concerns with Action Fraud, who then sent it to the Met.
Two homes were searched for evidence in connection to the two investigations. 14 of them were seized by officers.