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So far, the Ubirch vaccination card has only been issued in two districts
Photo: DER SPIEGEL
The Federal Ministry of Health wrote to 29 companies as part of a “negotiation procedure without a competition”, which was initially designed as a “secret competition”.
We were looking for the best offer for a digital vaccination certificate for everyone who is vaccinated against Covid-19.
The offer period was just five days, and seven companies took part.
The Cologne company Ubirch (51 percent) with its blockchain-based system and IBM (49 percent) have now been awarded the contract, as SPIEGEL learned from Ubirch.
There is already a digital proof of vaccination in Israel.
In China, certificates showing vaccinations and test results have been available via the WeChat online service since Monday.
On March 17th, the EU Commission intends to present a draft law for a "digital green passport" containing information on corona vaccinations, Covid-19 diseases and negative tests, thereby making it easier to lift travel restrictions.
The German solution should be compatible with the European requirements.
Technically, the Ubirch system works like this: Every vaccinated person receives a QR code at the vaccination center or at the family doctor - on a plastic card or a piece of paper, by email or app.
The QR code is an anonymous fingerprint that is generated from personal data such as the name and details of the vaccination date and the vaccine used.
It is cryptographically signed and stored in a total of five blockchains.
When reading in the QR code, for example when crossing a border or during an access control to an event, the only question asked is whether there is an entry in the blockchain of the Ubirch system that matches the QR code.
So no personal data is visible and compared.
The controlling person can only see - in an app or on a verification website - whether the digital fingerprint is in the Ubirch blockchain.
If so, that means: The controlled person has been vaccinated.
According to Ubirch, the greatest advantages, in addition to data protection, are speed and protection against forgery.
Entries in the classic yellow vaccination certificate are often difficult to decipher and easy to forge.
However, the security researcher and journalist Hanno Böck managed to outsmart the Ubirch system with forged QR codes, albeit with certain restrictions.
The problem should now be resolved.
Ready to run in eight weeks
Ubirch CEO Stephan Noller told SPIEGEL: "I think it's cool that this time it's not just some established big-tech company that delivers the solution, but a clever combination of big-tech and start-ups." Ubirch works with Govdigital , a cooperative of 15 IT service providers from the federal states and municipalities as well as the Federal Printing Office.
Noller also regards the merger as a start-up, just as "a communal one".
Govdigital provides one of the blockchains used.
According to Noller, IBM will, among other things, develop further apps for the system and promote the connection of the system to the doctor's offices.
So far, the Ubirch system has only been used in two districts: in Altötting in Upper Bavaria and in the Zollernalb district in Baden-Württemberg.
The Ministry of Health stipulates that it should be able to run nationwide within eight weeks.
According to the tender, the order has a total volume of 2.7 million euros.
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