IBM learns about COVID-19 global spy campaign

As the world waits for approval of one, or perhaps more, COVID-19 vaccines, IBM cybersecurity researchers say they have uncovered a global campaign to collect information on vaccine distribution in countries in development.

In a blog post Thursday, researchers at the tech company said the global phishing campaign was targeting organizations associated with the COVID-19 cold chain, used to ensure vaccines are stored safely in temperature controlled environments during storage and transport.

The researchers noted that the phishing campaign began in September, in six countries – including Germany, Italy and South Korea – and targeted organizations associated with Gavi, the Cold Chain Equipment Optimization Platform (CCEOP) program. of the Vaccine Alliance.

A refrigerated truck rolls out of the Pfizer Manufacturing plant in Puurs, Belgium on Thursday, December 3, 2020. British officials on Wednesday cleared a COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use, giving the green light to the world’s first vaccine against tha virus

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“Although the attribution of a company could not be established for this campaign, the precise targeting of leaders and major world organizations holds the potential characteristics of the craft of nation states,” the researchers wrote in the post.

The campaign’s goals are likely associated with developing the ‘cold chain’ needed to ensure that coronavirus vaccines receive the sterile, uninterrupted refrigeration they need to be effective for the nearly 3 billion people living in where temperature-controlled storage is insufficient, IBM said.

“Think of it as the lineage that will provide the most vital vaccines in the world,” study lead researcher Claire Zaboeva told The Associated Press.

The vaccine developed by Pfizer and its German partner, BioNTech, requires a cold room because it must be stored and shipped at ultra-cold temperatures of around minus 70 degrees Celsius (minus 94 degrees Fahrenheit).

The UK on Wednesday became the first country in the world to approve a rigorously tested COVID-19 vaccine, endorsing the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, as well as the vaccine created by Moderna, are both being considered by the FDA for emergency use clearance, widely expected later this month.

Another potential vaccine, created by British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford, is also under study.

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It is not known what the motivation is behind the attack, but it could be to understand how they are shipped and stored, with the aim of copying it, or undermining the legitimacy of the vaccine, said Nick Rossmann, global intelligence official. on threats from the IBM team. the AP.

Presidents Obama, Bush and Clinton have said in recent days that they will take the vaccine to believe it.

Whatever their motive, the hackers wanted to gain “advanced insight into the purchase and movement of a vaccine that can impact life and the global economy is likely a high-value nation-state target. and high priority, ”added the IBM researchers.

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The Associated Press contributed to this story.