New app helps verify health products

Consumers can access more details about items with a quick scan, thanks to Snap4Ori

loshana@thestar.com.my KUALA LUMPUR: The days of illegal duplication of holograms may soon be over, as a new technology has been developed in Malaysia that easily detects and verifies the authenticity of pharmaceutical products.

The technology, through a mobile application called Snap4Ori, uses a Colour Cube (CCube), a 3D colour barcode that can store more data about a certain product.

The CCube has eight colour features that allows it to store more information, including pictures, videos and animated graphics.

“It provides the ability to offer product authentication services at the consumer’s convenience by letting them verify a product simply by scanning the CCube codes using their smartphone.

“Product information like licence and registration numbers will also need to match so that consumers can trust the brand and enforcement teams can easily verify, track and trace registered products in the market,” said the barcode’s codeveloper, Burj Asia Corporation, in a statement.

The barcode, developed in collaboration with Telekom Research and Development Sdn Bhd, is printed out on a security label measuring 8mm by 18mm, which can be pasted to a health product.

It has a flipflop effect printed on the security label, reflecting the Health Ministry abbreviation (KKM) and the product’s unique ID.

Upon scanning, consumers can access more information about the product.

The barcode has yet to be used on health products here, but the smartphone app is already available for free on iOS AppStore and Google Playstore.

Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Seri Madius Tangau, who launched the Snap4Ori – Colour Cube at the Malaysia Commercialisation Year (MCY) 2016 Summit exhibition, said the company should approach the Health Ministry and other agencies to market the service, which he described as useful and innovative.

“This has been a good year for commercialisation of products that have been researched in depth. At this exhibition, we have 150 products that were taken beyond the research and innovation stage and are now available in the market,” he added.