Fact Check: Does COVID-19 Vaccine Really Contain Chips To Control, Track Recipients?
SPC Angel Laureano holds a COVID-19 vaccine at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on December 14, 2020 in Bethesda, Maryland. Manuel Balce Ceneta-Pool/Getty Images

Several videos on social media claimed that the COVID-19 vaccine might contain chips that track and control recipients. Vaccine distribution did involve chips, but what is it used for?

In one of the viral videos in May 2020, a narrator talked about the COVID-19 vaccines containing chips that could possibly change a person's behavior. It became viral again in December when distribution started.

BBC recognized these claims as something people feared since the videos said the chips could change a person's DNA.

The Quint found that there were chips installed in COVID-19 vaccine syringes, but they are used to track vaccines' distribution. So the chips won't be in the COVID-19 vaccine itself and won't be injected into people.

Scientists, Apiject Repeal DNA Alteration Claims

BBC asked three scientists about the said claims, and all of them said these claims were false.

Some recently developed vaccines use a part of the virus' genetic material so the body can produce a protein present in the coronavirus. With the presence of these proteins, the body learns to recognize and better combat them.

"Injecting RNA into a person doesn't do anything to the DNA of a human cell," Prof Jeffrey Almond of Oxford University told BBC.

Read also: FACT CHECK: Here's the Truth About Pfizer Vaccine Side Effects and Deaths

In May, Jay Walker, executive chairman of pre-filled syringe maker Apiject, told Christian Broadcasting Network that an RFID chip for vaccine syringes was "optional" and will not be part of the injection.

According to Reuters, he compared the RFID to a "bar code" that doesn't store a person's personal information.

Steve Hofman, the company's spokesman, also said that the chip is designed for two purposes: "to allow the healthcare provider to confirm that the actual injectable and the vaccine in it has not expired and that it is not counterfeit."

The chip also confirms that a particular shot has not been used. Hofman said a health care provider could use a mobile app to capture and tally this information on the chip.

Bill Gates Footage Altered in Misleading COVID-19 Vaccine Video

Another viral video had similar claims with manipulated footage of Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates talking about injecting people with chips.

It claimed that the pandemic was a cover-up to inject people with microchips, with Gates behind it.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation flagged the claim as false, but not before it went viral on social media.

There was no evidence that could show that Bill Gates was planning for such a thing in the future, but many people had already seen the footage.

According to Reuters, the video was an edited version of a 2013 video. Bill's original interview footage showed that he was actually talking about a digital future and financial inclusion.

It was edited to make it look like he said that "innovations like vaccines, we need a measuring system that tracks the vaccine.

"But the full footage showed Gates talking about breakthrough innovations that "have changed the future for billions of people," such as "holding crops."

He also referred to a "measurement system," but was not talking about vaccines at the time.