RemCheck: A Novel Drug Validator Application to detect fake Remdesivir, an Anti-Viral Drug for COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has turned out to be one of the dreadful disaster mankind has ever faced. With the subsequent waves of the pandemic setting in several countries, the number of cases being reported is quite alarming. People need to stay extremely vigilant and ensure strict adherence to social distancing, hand hygiene, and usage of personal protectives like masks, hand gloves and face shields. Remdesivir, an anti-viral drug used against the COVID-19, believed to have some therapeutic effects is on a surplus demand. There have been reports of illegal hoarding of these drugs. We need to be vigilant and keep a check on the circulation of fake Remdesivir drugs in the market amidst the pandemic. The study proposed development of a novel Drug Validator Application to detect fake Remdesivir drugs. This is done by scanning the carton or the vial of the Remdesivir drug through the dedicated Android application. This is further sent to the cloud server for processing. The AI model which runs in the cloud server evaluates the genuineness of the drug image. The report comprising the recommendation as Genuine or Fake is sent to the user through his/her registered mobile number and e-mail address. This application could curb the circulation of fake drugs in the market amidst the pandemic and could help in undertaking a real-time surveillance.