KUALA LUMPUR, March 6 — The Ministry of Health has warned the public about fake ads promoting the sale of Covid-19 vaccines. This came after an image of a purported Shopee listing that offered Pfizer vaccines for RM63.88 went viral.

As highlighted in their tweet, only the Ministry of Health is authorised to supply Covid-19 vaccines in Malaysia. Sales or distribution through other channels are strictly not allowed. It also warned that vaccines that are offered in the market could be fake or come from an unknown source.

It was reported that Shopee has sent out a statement denying the sale of Pfizer vaccine on their platform. It appears that the image had originated from a tweet and the person that created it has confirmed that it was doctored.

When we did a search for Covid-19 vaccine on Shopee, no products were found. From what we know, Shopee prohibits the sale of any prohibited items on their platform as they have local policies, regulations and restrictions set by government agencies and regulatory bodies. To prevent listing of illegal and prohibited items, Shopee maintains a database of blacklisted keywords which is constantly updated.

The only way to get the vaccine in Malaysia is by registering with the National Covid-19 immunisation programme. The vaccines will be offered for free to everyone in Malaysia including both citizens and non-citizens.

If you haven’t register, you can do so via MySejahtera (Apple App Store, Google Play Store, Huawei App Gallery). Alternatively, you can also register via the web at vaksincovid.gov.my or call the hotline at 1-800-888-828. — SoyaCincau