At the time the United States and European countries had banned or limited export of vaccines against the coronavirus to first deal with the pandemic at home, Russia was willing to share its Sputnik V with countries in need.

The COVID-19 pandemic sweeping the world has made people poorer and more vulnerable to human trafficking, according to the US State Department’s annual Trafficking in Persons Report.

Brazil will suspend its US$324 million contract for India’s Covaxin COVID-19 vaccine upon the recommendation of Brazil’s Comptroller General office (CGU), Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga said Tuesday.

In Russia,  local news reports that a sophisticated black market for fake vaccine cards is thriving in secret Telegram forums even as COVID-19 runs rampant through the country.

French and Israeli police have dismantled a criminal network that is believed to have swindled France out of 12 million euro (US$14.32 million) in COVID-19 unemployment benefits, Europol said in a statement on Wednesday.

Whistleblowing is one of the most effective ways to detect and prevent corruption and other malpractice, and people who dare to speak up need to be properly protected, Transparency International (TI) said, marking the June 23 — World Whistleblowers Day.

Human rights campaigners urged the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Friday to take steps to ensure a three-year loan for Cameroon is not squandered due to corruption.

A Europe-wide coordinated operation targeting human trafficking and labour exploitation led over the past few weeks to hundreds of arrests and the identification of at least 630 laborers who were potential victims of different types of exploitative conditions, Europol said in a statement.

Almost two-thirds of European Union residents believe corruption is an issue in their respective countries, according to a new report published on Tuesday which calls into question the EU’s image as a “place of integrity”.

Transparency International warned on Tuesday that the lack of transparency in COVID-19 vaccine trials and the secrecy over deals between governments and drug companies jeopardize the success of the global pandemic response.

Civil society organizations in the Philippines accused President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration of using COVID-19 to eliminate political opponents by arresting them on trumped up charges and then letting them die of COVID-19 in prison.

Iraqi authorities have suspended or dismissed several officials after a fire in a Baghdad hospital killed at least 82 people and injured 110 last Saturday. Iraqis, including the President, are blaming corruption, negligence and mismanagement for the tragedy.

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) urged the public not to buy vaccines on the Internet after it received reports that counterfeit COVID-19 jabs are being sold via social media in Mexico, Argentina and Brazil.

In over two-thirds of the world, the media is “constrained,” “seriously impeded” or “totally blocked,” and since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, journalists have been harassed, imprisoned and killed, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) concluded after reviewing press freedom in 180 countries.

The European Union released on Monday a detailed report it publishes every four years outlining current and future threats serious and organized crime can pose to the EU, according to a press release.

Honduran authorities last week arrested Marco Bográn, the former head of an institution that purchased old and useless mobile hospitals at highly inflated prices for the Honduran government at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has marked the state of human rights in 2020 and has further perpetuated inequality, discrimination and oppression all over the globe, Amnesty International said in its latest report.

U.S. authorities have seized four domains that purported to be the legitimate websites of Pfizer Inc., and where criminals advertised fake vaccine information and stock options to collect personal information from visitors.

Another German politician joined the list of suspects in a corruption scandal involving the procurement of COVID-19 face masks that has rocked the country’s conservatives and prompted the Bundestag to introduce a lobby register.

The United States’ $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus bill that President Joe Biden signed last week, has become the first coronavirus package to address cybersecurity as part of a national recovery plan.