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The groups that launched the assault on various pharmaceutical organizations are working for major governments. Specifically, reports show that three entities working for the governments of North Korea and Russia have launched cyberattacks against various organizations involved in researching treatments and a vaccine against the new coronavirus in several countries, including France, South Korea. and the United States. giant Microsoft Corp reported on Friday, cited by Reuters and DPA.
According to the software giant, a Russian group of hackers called “Fancy Bear” and two North Korean groups called “Zinc” and “Cerium” are involved in recent attempts to hack into the networks of seven pharmaceutical companies and research institutes in Canada. France. , India, South Korea and the United States.
Most of the targets are “manufacturers that had COVID-19 vaccines in various stages of clinical trials,” Tom Burt, Microsoft’s vice president of security for the company, said in a blog post Friday. Burt did not name any of the companies involved.
In most cases, the intrusion attempts failed, but some were successful, Microsoft adds, without further details.
They represent themselves as representatives of the World Health Organization.
Hackers use both so-called brute force attacks (to guess the username and password) and spear-phishing tactics (a series of emails designed to make the user react and act).
One of the North Korean groups sent baits by email using “COVID-19 themes”, posing as “representatives of the World Health Organization” (WHO).
The drug companies targeted in the latest attacks are based in Canada, France, India, South Korea and the United States, Microsoft said.
The United States accused China and Russia in July of trying to break into the systems of vaccine manufacturers.
The field of health, the “favorite” target of hackers
Microsoft says that for some time now, the healthcare field has been a favorite target of cyberattacks due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Cyberattack attempts have targeted the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Spain, Thailand, and the United States.
Microsoft’s announcement is part of the latest information on attempts by some states to hack into research on medical efforts to combat the pandemic.
