In recent weeks both the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have recommended that everyone – not just healthcare workers – wear N95 masks – the gold standard in protection against the highly contagious Delta variant of the Covid virus. N95 masks are certified by the US National Institute of Occupational Health and Safety (NIOSH) to capture at least 95% tiny particles (0.3-micron particle) such as the aerosol spray which carries the Covid virus.

While the Chinese standard KN95 masks are approved by Chinese regulators to do the same, in reality, it’s nearly impossible to know if a KN95 mask bought in the US is authentic. Fraud is rampant in the mask market. Some 60 to 70 percent of all KN95 masks sold in the US are fakes – no more protective than wearing a piece of toilet paper on your face.

The best protection possible is a NIOSH-approved N95 mask, and then only if you know, you are buying an authentic American-made mask. That’s why Aegle, a Houston-based company with a unionized workforce, developed our proprietary Authentication & Traceability Open Data Platform—to ensure the authenticity of our products and combat counterfeiting. We put an NFC (Near Field Communication) chip in every box. Then, using any NFC-enabled smartphone, the buyer can confirm the authenticity of the purchase and see all raw materials, internal and third-party testing results for its production batch.

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