U.S, Canada
On Thursday, Britain’s findings were supported by its Canadian and U.S. partners, including the National Security Agency.
The NSA said organizations in the U.S. involved in vaccine development were also targeted by the hackers. The objective of the hacking was “likely to steal information and intellectual property relating to the development and testing of Covid-19 vaccines,” according to the NSA statement.
The announcement has political implications because President Donald Trump has been criticized for seeking to downplay controversy with the Russian government. It also comes as Trump is under criticism for failing to respond to a warning from U.S. intelligence that the Russian government may have offered to pay the Taliban to kill U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan.
U.S. officials have said China is also working to steal U.S. vaccine research. Attorney General William Barr said in a speech Thursday that hackers linked to China have targeted American universities and companies in a bid to steal intellectual property tied to coronavirus treatments.
The Canadian government also released a statement, confirming Ottawa is working with Westminster and Washington to stop the “malicious cyber activities.” It said the hacks “serve to hinder response efforts at a time when healthcare experts and medical researchers need every available resource to help fight the pandemic.”
The development brings concerns about vaccine nationalism to a whole new level at a time when countries are scrambling to secure supplies of future shots in advance. Health advocates have grown increasingly concerned poorer regions will get left behind as the U.S. and other nations move to lock up doses.
In the U.K., the University of Oxford, working with partner AstraZeneca Plc, and Imperial College London have experimental coronavirus vaccines in human testing. Across the world, about 160 coronavirus vaccines are in various stages of development, according to the World Health Organization.
Worries about the U.S. pushing its way to the front of the vaccine line arose in May when Sanofi Chief Executive Officer Paul Hudson said that its shots might be available there first because one of the country’s agencies helped fund development. Sanofi said later that its vaccine would be available to everyone.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.