The United States Department of Justice identified and accused a pair of Chinese hackers of intercepting data on vaccine development for COVID-19. The suspects were accused of trying to obtain data and assist the Chinese government, while trying to obtain monetary benefits for themselves.
The hackers were running a cyber theft campaign aimed at different industries related to security, manufacturing and solar energy, advances the New York Times. Authorities report that, with the Chinese spy service, hackers have shifted their focus, now focusing on data about the COVID-19 pandemic and progress in finding the vaccine.
Donald Trump has been very critical of the Chinese government, not only for stealing secrets, but also for failing to contain the pandemic in his territory, before spreading globally. China is also noted for not working with the rest of the world on the war against the pandemic.
In addition to China, Russia has also been accused of trying to steal information about vaccine development. John Demers, the head of the United States Department of Justice, commented that China is now siding with Russia, Iran and North Korea, in the shameful club of countries that protect cybercriminals who work for their state, in this case in The insatiable hunger of the Chinese Communist Party to obtain the intellectual property of American and non-Chinese companies, including the progress of the investigation of COVID-19, is concrete, says The Associated Press.
US authorities are not confirming whether the hackers successfully obtained the coronavirus investigation, but rather the attempted spying aimed at companies.