North Korea Attempted to Steal Covid Vaccine Technology from Pfizer, Says South Korea

According to South Korean intelligence officials, North Korea attempted to steal Covid-19 vaccine technology from Pfizer.

It is currently unclear as to what, if any, data was stolen.

South Korea’s National Intelligence Agency privately briefed lawmakers about the alleged attack, reported local news agency Yonhap.

North Korea has yet to report a single case of coronavirus.

However, North Korea is due to receive two million doses of the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine in the coming weeks.

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North Korea closed its borders in January 2020 soon after the virus began to emerge in China.

In November 2020, Microsoft said at least nine health organizations including Pfizer had been targeted by state-backed organizations in North Korea and Russia.

It said North Korean groups dubbed Zinc and Cerium, and a Russian group nicknamed Fancy Bear, were responsible.

However, Russia has denied targeting other countries’ vaccine research.

While many of the break-in attempts failed, Microsoft warned at the time that some had been successful.