CoWin brings new API to know vaccine status of an individual

CoWin has come up with a new software interface (API) that helps organisations to know the vaccination status of their employees and customers. This is to facilitate faster reopening of economic activities while also ensuring safety of people during the pandemic.

With the help of mobile number and name, on this API called KYC-VS (Know Your Customer’s/Client’s Vaccination Status) it will be easy to know the vaccination status of an individual. CoWin will send a response to the verifying entity on the individual’s status of vaccination. The response will indicate whether the person is not vaccinated (denoted by ‘0’), partially vaccinated (denoted by ‘1’) or fully vaccinated (denoted by ‘2’).

Through a simple OTP process this new API will enable businesses to know the status of vaccination of an individual. According to the details shared by the PIB, this check is only possible when a customer shares their CoWIN linked mobile number, and then gives an OTP, to preserve consent and privacy.

This feature will enable an Aadhaar-like authentication service for the status of vaccination through the CoWIN platform. Once this API is integrated into a business' system, it can ask for an individual's vaccination status easily. The individual will need to enter their mobile number and name. Thereafter, they will receive an OTP, which they have to enter.

After completion of the process, CoWIN will send a response to the business on the individual's status of vaccination. Responses will be offered in three ways – person not vaccination, person is partially vaccination, or person is fully vaccination. As per the announcement, apart from the vaccination status no other information will be shared with the business. It asserts that the API is both consent-based and privacy preserving.

The announcement also says that this new KYC-VS API from CoWIN will help as socio-economic activities are gradually being revived. The new platform will be useful to an enterprise that may need to know the vaccination status of its employees to resume functions in offices, workplaces etc. It will also be useful to the railways that may want to get the status of vaccination of the passengers who are getting their seats reserved in the trains.

Similarly, it may be useful to airlines that could use this feature to get the status of vaccination of a passengers while they are booking their flight tickets. Even airports may only want to allow vaccinated passengers to pass through, and this API could be a useful and seamless way to identify vaccination status. Hotels may also want to know the vaccination status of the residents at the time they are checking into the hotel, or at the time of making online bookings.

All of these use cases and many more are said to be fulfilled with this new KYC-VS API. The announcement adds, “In order to facilitate quick integration and faster adoption, the CoWIN team has prepared a webpage with the API, which may be embedded in any system. This will allow for a seamless integration with any system in no time.”

This CoWIN API can be utilised by any service provider, private or public, for whom verifying an individual's vaccination status is critical. CoWIN, in the past, has released several APIs, one of which enabled third party apps to register for COVID-19 vaccination and book slots. A set of guidelines have been introduced for CoWIN API usage, which can be read in this post.