Due to coronavirus pandemic, most of the people are locked in their houses. Thousands of people are getting infected every day. So every country in the world is their best to invent a vaccine of COVID-19. Now the US, Canada, and UK government officials are saying that ‘state-backed hackers’ are trying to steal this vaccine research.Â
The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) said the hackers “almost certainly” operated as “part of Russian intelligence services”. Hackers are trying to get information related to the development of vaccines for the novel coronavirus.
According to the security agency, all signs point to the hacking group APT29 also known as Cozy Bear. Cozy Bear is also accused of many cyber attacks in the past and its believed that they are close to Russian intelligence agencies.
The UK, US, and Canadian agencies said the hackers had exploited software flaws to get access to vulnerable computer systems and had used custom malware called WellMess and WellMail to upload and download files from infected machines.
“The National Security Agency, along with our partners, remains steadfast in its commitment to protecting national security by collectively issuing this critical cyber-security advisory as foreign actors continue to take advantage of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic,” said NSA cyber-security director Anne Neuberger.