Israeli cybersecurity giant Check Point informed police on Sunday of the existence of a Telegram group offering to sell false-negative tests to pilgrims returning from Uman, Ukraine, financial daily Globes reported.
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According to Check Point, the "COVID Vaccination Certificates / COVID Tests" group was operating since June and offered "negative COVID tests for those returning from Uman" in recent weeks for 100 shekels, around $31.
Check Point forwarded the information to the Police Lahav 433 Major Crimes Unit so that they could identify the group's operators and prosecute them, according to the report.
Magen David Adom emergency services estimated that 10% of travelers returning from Uman tested positive for COVID-19, and suspects that the number of pilgrims who used false tests to return home could number in the hundreds.
Israel's border authority, a branch of the Interior Ministry, also confirmed that there were coronavirus cases among those who departed Uman to enter Israel.
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett ordered police to investigate and charge those involved in the fraud, and to hold them responsible for intentionally spreading the virus.
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Analysts expressed concern over the incident in Uman, but reassured that the COVID models tested indicated a declining trend in case numbers.
Israel has recorded 1,184,053 coronavirus cases, including 7,406 death, since the onset of the global pandemic in March 2020.
i24NEWS contributed to this report.
