Honeywell on Monday announced digital authentication technology for the pharmaceutical industry in response to the growing menace of counterfeit products.

An acute shortage of drugs to treat symptoms of COVID-19 has led to increased circulation of counterfeit medicines in recent times, a company statement said.

It added that there are reports of fake antiviral medicines and spurious injectable immunosuppressants in the market.

With rising demand for vaccines, there is concern that fake vaccines could find their way into circulation.

Earlier this year, the World Health Organisation sounded an alarm over criminal exploitation of an unmet global demand for COVID-19 vaccines.

Already, counterfeit vaccines have been detected in countries such as Mexico and Poland.

The Honeywell solution comprises a digital code that is embedded in the packaging of pharmaceutical products.

The end user can validate the authenticity of the product by scanning the digital code with the help of a smart phone letting the end user know it is safe to use.

"The software that validates the product's authenticity through a database is accessible through a Honeywell app available for download for iOS and Android users and gathers market intelligence," the statement added.