Marin Mrčela, president of the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO), has today published guidelines addressed to member states aimed at preventing corruption in the context of the health emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. At this time of undeniable emergency, “concentration of power, derogation of rights and freedoms” and “large amounts of money infused into the economy to alleviate the crisis” may lead to higher corruption risks. “Decisions related to measures by central, regional and local authorities to face the pandemic must be transparent and subject to oversight and accountability. Whistle-blowers (i.e. public and private employees who report fraud and illegal acts) “must be protected”, he added, insisting on the “need for regular and reliable information from public institutions”. “We should not allow COVID-19 to compromise our values and our standards”. Corrupt practices, the five-page document published by GRECO reads, can infiltrate the public and private sectors and be related to “the procurement system, medical services, new product research and development, including conflicts of interest and the role of lobbying” as well as to the “trafficking of counterfeit medical products”.