Local BBB office says don't post vaccination cards on social media

Whitney Quick speaks of a disturbing trend, particularly on Facebook, of people posting photos of their vaccination cards in their news feeds.

"Everyone is doing it, unfortunately," said Quick, regional director of the Better Business Bureau of Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois, with an office in Cape Girardeau.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wallet-sized cards contain your name, your date of birth and other dose-specific information.

"Your birthday may be the very last thing needed in order for scammers to create false vaccination cards," Quick said.

Quick said sales of fake vaccination cards have become a real problem in Great Britain, for example.

"I just spoke Friday with our Springfield, Missouri, (BBB) office and this is the very same issue they've run into there just this week," she added.

Quick noted the vaccine dose six-digit identifier, a collection of letters and numbers printed on the front of cards, may also be dangerous.

"A scammer can use your code to make his fake card look legitimate," she observed.

In a blog post last month, the Federal Trade Commission amplified Quick's warning.

"Identify theft works like a puzzle, made up of pieces of personal information. You don't want to give identity thieves the pieces they need to finish the picture. Once identity thieves have those pieces, they can open new accounts in your name and claim your tax refund for themselves," read the FTC blog.

Recommendations

Quick said if you want to tell others via social media you've been vaccinated, try the following methods to avoid potential identity theft.

• Share a photo of your vaccine sticker ("I've been vaccinated.") that many providers give out after inoculations.
• Set a special "vaccination frame" around your profile picture.
• Check your security and privacy settings in Facebook to ensure only certain friends and family can see what you post.