British spies say North Korea used LinkedIn, WhatsApp in vaccine hack

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British spies say North Korea used LinkedIn, WhatsApp in vaccine hack

By Robert Mendick

London: North Korea used hackers to pose as headhunters in an attempt to steal Britain's COVID-19 vaccine secrets, security sources said.

The hackers targeted AstraZeneca, the drugmaker working with Oxford University to develop one of the leading coronavirus vaccine candidates.

They used LinkedIn and WhatsApp to approach staff with fake job offers, and sent documents containing malicious code that was designed to provide access to computer systems.

A researcher works on the coronavirus vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University.

A researcher works on the coronavirus vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University.Credit: University of Oxford

The UK's National Cyber Security Centre declined to give further details, but it did not deny North Korean operatives had attempted to steal vaccine secrets.

North Korea's mission to the UN declined to respond to a request for comment. The country has previously denied carrying out such attacks. AstraZeneca declined to comment.

It is the third time in November that North Korean hackers have been accused of trying to secure vaccine secrets.

On Friday, South Korea's intelligence agency said it had foiled North Korean attempts to hack into South Korean companies developing coronavirus vaccines, according to members of the South's parliamentary intelligence committee.

Earlier, Microsoft said hackers working for the Russian and North Korean governments had tried to break into the networks of seven pharmaceutical companies and vaccine researchers in Canada, France, India, South Korea and the United States.

The Telegraph, London; Reuters

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