Despite Data Leak and Glitches, Foreigners able to Register on Vaccine Site

Thailand’s new vaccination appointment registration website, expatvac.consular.go.th, has received mixed reviews since its launch. 

Many people reported that they had a variety of issues, and a few mentioned that they eventually received emails confirming their registration and upcoming appointments. Consequently, it resulted in a data breach.

The vaccination registration site went live at 11 a.m., and within minutes, users were complaining about crashes, glitches, and the fact that their personal information was accessible online. Screenshots of publicly accessible backdoors that disclosed the emails and personal information of over 20,000 applicants began to surface online, raising worries about safety and privacy. 

The data leak looks to have been rectified now. Many people reported that the system failed at the point where they typed their email address and the vaccination registration site started crashing or an error occurred prompting them to start over or refresh the page. When they did so, the system refused to accept their email address. The backend database recorded their information while the site went down, and as a result, the email address had already been used and was declined. 

Some others recommended that using the same email address they used for immigration was the workable option. Many people advised saving photos of the passport and visa, as well as any pertinent medical paperwork. People stated that they were able to attempt again and again despite the crashes, failures, and site outages, and eventually made it through the procedure. 

A user shared their confirmation email, stating the successful enrollment, and would receive another email later offering a vaccine appointment that must be confirmed within 24 hours. The message also stated that the site will schedule appointments for vaccination centers outside of the greater Bangkok area. 

The Ministry of Public Health will allocate a vaccination site in the region for people who live in areas other than Bangkok and neighboring provinces (Nakorn Pathom, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Samut Prakan, and Samut Sakhon). The vaccine schedule will be defined by the Ministry of Public Health’s priorities, which include age group, vulnerability, and high-risk zones, among other criteria. 

Despite several difficulties, officials appear to be working efficiently to fix concerns, and registrations appear to be proceeding. It is suggested that if foreigners find problems, they should keep attempting while the vaccination site opens and stabilizes.