The US Justice Department said today that two Chinese nationals have been indicted for hacking coronavirus vaccine research.

The Justice Department said that the Chinese hackers also targeted human rights activists in the United States and Hong Kong while adding that they were &nbsp;working with China's ministry of state security.

Watch:

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/gravitas-inside-the-russian-lab-that-is-making-the-covid-19-vaccine-314765/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

Earlier, &nbsp;Britain, the United States and Canada had accused Russian hackers of targeting coronavirus research. They had said that a Russian hacking group called APT29 was behind the online attacks.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/coronavirus-north-korea-enters-vaccine-race-314957">Also Read:&nbsp;North Korea enters vaccine race</a>

The US said the Chinese nationals were Li Xiaoyu, 34, and Dong Jiazhi, 33. &nbsp;FBI Deputy Director David Bowdich said: "Cybercrimes directed by the Chinese government's intelligence services not only threaten the United States but also every other country that supports fair play, international norms, and the rule of law.

US Attorney William Hyslop added that computer systems of many businesses, individuals and agencies throughout the United States and worldwide have been hacked

However, Russia denied the reports. America had named another Russian group "cozy bear" and had said it was involved in hacking the research. In May, America had claimed that Iran and China have tried to hack American research.

There are at last 140 vaccines in pre-clinical stage with at least two in large-scale efficacy trials including the Moderna vaccine in the United States and Oxford-AstraZeneca from the UK.

Earlier, Britain's National Cyber Security Centre had said a Russian group called APT29 was linked to the country's intelligence service and was involved in hacking the virus research.&nbsp;

"The NCSC assesses that APT29, also named the Dukes or Cozy Bear, almost certainly operate as part of Russian Intelligence Services," the National Cyber Security Centre had said.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab hit out against Russia calling it "reckless behaviour" and "completely unacceptable" that the Russian Intelligence Services are targeting those working to combat the coronavirus pandemic."

The US Justice Department said today that two Chinese nationals have been indicted for hacking coronavirus vaccine research. The Justice Department said that the Chinese hackers also targeted human rights activists in the United States and Hong Kong while adding that they were working with China's ministry of state security.

The US Justice Department said today that two Chinese nationals have been indicted for hacking coronavirus vaccine research. The Justice Department said that the Chinese hackers also targeted human rights activists in the United States and Hong Kong while adding that they were working with China's ministry of state security. Watch: Earlier, Britain, the United States and Canada had accused Russian hackers of targeting coronavirus research. They had said that a Russian hacking group called APT29 was behind the online attacks. Also Read: North Korea enters vaccine race The US said the Chinese nationals were Li Xiaoyu, 34, and Dong Jiazhi, 33. FBI Deputy Director David Bowdich said: "Cybercrimes directed by the Chinese government's intelligence services not only threaten the United States but also every other country that supports fair play, international norms, and the rule of law. US Attorney William Hyslop added that computer systems of many businesses, individuals and agencies throughout the United States and worldwide have been hacked However, Russia denied the reports. America had named another Russian group "cozy bear" and had said it was involved in hacking the research. In May, America had claimed that Iran and China have tried to hack American research. There are at last 140 vaccines in pre-clinical stage with at least two in large-scale efficacy trials including the Moderna vaccine in the United States and Oxford-AstraZeneca from the UK. Earlier, Britain's National Cyber Security Centre had said a Russian group called APT29 was linked to the country's intelligence service and was involved in hacking the virus research. "The NCSC assesses that APT29, also named the Dukes or Cozy Bear, almost certainly operate as part of Russian Intelligence Services," the National Cyber Security Centre had said. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab hit out against Russia calling it "reckless behaviour" and "completely unacceptable" that the Russian Intelligence Services are targeting those working to combat the coronavirus pandemic."

US indicts two Chinese nationals for seeking to steal COVID-19 vaccine

Britain, the United States and Canada on Thursday risked worsening fraught diplomatic ties with Russia by accusing Moscow-linked hackers of targeting labs in their countries conducting coronavirus vaccine research.

The three governments pointed the finger at the Kremlin, saying that a hacking group called APT29 was "almost certainly" linked to Russian intelligence.

In a separate claim, London said "Russian actors" sought to disrupt last year's UK general election by circulating leaked trade documents between Britain and the United States.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/russia-ready-to-share-covid-19-vaccine-technology-with-other-countries-314263">Also read:&nbsp;Russia ready to share COVID-19 vaccine technology with other countries</a>

Both accusations came even before the publication in the coming days of a long-awaited British parliamentary report into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 Brexit vote.

Russia quickly rejected the accusations as "groundless".

The United Kingdom’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and Canada’s Communications Security Establishment (CSE) said Thursday that APT29 was "a cyber espionage group, almost certainly part of the Russian intelligence services," adding their the assessment was endorsed by their US counterpart.

"Throughout 2020, APT29 has targeted various organisations involved in COVID-19 vaccine development in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, highly likely with the intention of stealing information and intellectual property relating to the development and testing of COVID-19 vaccines," it said.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/eu-in-talks-with-moderna-biontech-curevac-to-secure-possible-covid-vaccines-314155">Also read:&nbsp;EU in talks with Moderna, BioNtech, CureVac to secure possible COVID vaccines</a>

The group was "likely to continue to target organisations involved in COVID-19 vaccine research and development, as they seek to answer additional intelligence questions relating to the pandemic".

In a separate statement, the US National Security Agency repeated the accusations and said that APT29 "uses a variety of tools and techniques to predominantly target governmental, diplomatic, think-tank, healthcare and energy targets for intelligence gain".

Russia and Britain have been at loggerheads since Moscow was accused of trying to kill double agent Sergei Skripal with a powerful military-grade nerve agent in 2018.

The attack in Salisbury, southwest England, came 12 years after the radiation poisoning of former spy Alexander Litvinenko in London. Again, Russia denied involvement.

Completely unacceptable 
Britain is one of a number of countries conducting human vaccine trials for COVID-19. One, at the University of Oxford, showed potential positive results, media reports said on Thursday.

But the National Cyber Security Centre, part of Britain's GCHQ electronic eavesdropping agency, said labs were among those targeted "to steal valuable intellectual property".

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/world-depends-on-india-to-mass-produce-covid-19-vaccine-314209">Also watch:&nbsp;World depends on India to mass-produce COVID-19 vaccine</a>

NCSC director of operations Paul Chichester said known targets included UK, US and Canadian vaccine research and development organisations using techniques including malware.

APT29 -- also known as "The Dukes" or "Cozy Bear" -- had also tried to hack government, diplomatic, think-tank and energy groups, it added.

Nearly 600,000 people have died and more than 13.5 million infected in the coronavirus outbreak this year.

Britain's Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said that targeting those working to find a vaccine was "completely unacceptable".

"While others pursue their selfish interests with reckless behaviour, the UK and its allies are getting on with the hard work of finding a vaccine and protecting global health," he added.

Election meddling 
Earlier, the government said there were strong suspicions of a Russian link to the leak of classified documents about a possible post-Brexit trade deal with the United States.

An investigation was launched after files were published on the social media site Reddit and were later picked up by the main opposition Labour party.

The party used them in its campaign for the December 12 election, claiming they proved Prime Minister Boris Johnson would "sell-out" the state-run health sector to US President Donald Trump.

Health funding was a key campaign issue, and Johnson was repeatedly forced to deny the claim.&nbsp;

Labour's then leader Jeremy Corbyn dismissed claims the leak was put online by Russia as a "conspiracy theory".

Raab stopped short of accusing Moscow of direct involvement.

But he said it was "almost certain... that Russian actors" were involved by putting the leaked documents online.

Johnson and his ruling Conservative party won a huge majority in the election, allowing him to push through his Brexit deal to take Britain out of the European Union.

Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee launched a probe into suspicions of Russian interference in the 2016 Brexit vote after concerns sparked by claims of meddling in the US presidential election won by Trump.

It completed the report last year but publication was delayed first by the election, and then Johnson's failure to nominate new members to the committee.

This finally happened last week and members had their first meeting on Thursday, where they agreed to publish the Russia report before next Wednesday.

Britain, the United States and Canada on Thursday risked worsening fraught diplomatic ties with Russia by accusing Moscow-linked hackers of targeting labs in their countries conducting coronavirus vaccine research.

Britain, the United States and Canada on Thursday risked worsening fraught diplomatic ties with Russia by accusing Moscow-linked hackers of targeting labs in their countries conducting coronavirus vaccine research. The three governments pointed the finger at the Kremlin, saying that a hacking group called APT29 was "almost certainly" linked to Russian intelligence. In a separate claim, London said "Russian actors" sought to disrupt last year's UK general election by circulating leaked trade documents between Britain and the United States. Also read: Russia ready to share COVID-19 vaccine technology with other countries Both accusations came even before the publication in the coming days of a long-awaited British parliamentary report into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 Brexit vote. Russia quickly rejected the accusations as "groundless". The United Kingdom’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and Canada’s Communications Security Establishment (CSE) said Thursday that APT29 was "a cyber espionage group, almost certainly part of the Russian intelligence services," adding their the assessment was endorsed by their US counterpart. "Throughout 2020, APT29 has targeted various organisations involved in COVID-19 vaccine development in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, highly likely with the intention of stealing information and intellectual property relating to the development and testing of COVID-19 vaccines," it said. Also read: EU in talks with Moderna, BioNtech, CureVac to secure possible COVID vaccines The group was "likely to continue to target organisations involved in COVID-19 vaccine research and development, as they seek to answer additional intelligence questions relating to the pandemic". In a separate statement, the US National Security Agency repeated the accusations and said that APT29 "uses a variety of tools and techniques to predominantly target governmental, diplomatic, think-tank, healthcare and energy targets for intelligence gain". Russia and Britain have been at loggerheads since Moscow was accused of trying to kill double agent Sergei Skripal with a powerful military-grade nerve agent in 2018. The attack in Salisbury, southwest England, came 12 years after the radiation poisoning of former spy Alexander Litvinenko in London. Again, Russia denied involvement. Completely unacceptable Britain is one of a number of countries conducting human vaccine trials for COVID-19. One, at the University of Oxford, showed potential positive results, media reports said on Thursday. But the National Cyber Security Centre, part of Britain's GCHQ electronic eavesdropping agency, said labs were among those targeted "to steal valuable intellectual property". Also watch: World depends on India to mass-produce COVID-19 vaccine NCSC director of operations Paul Chichester said known targets included UK, US and Canadian vaccine research and development organisations using techniques including malware. APT29 -- also known as "The Dukes" or "Cozy Bear" -- had also tried to hack government, diplomatic, think-tank and energy groups, it added. Nearly 600,000 people have died and more than 13.5 million infected in the coronavirus outbreak this year. Britain's Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said that targeting those working to find a vaccine was "completely unacceptable". "While others pursue their selfish interests with reckless behaviour, the UK and its allies are getting on with the hard work of finding a vaccine and protecting global health," he added. Election meddling Earlier, the government said there were strong suspicions of a Russian link to the leak of classified documents about a possible post-Brexit trade deal with the United States. An investigation was launched after files were published on the social media site Reddit and were later picked up by the main opposition Labour party. The party used them in its campaign for the December 12 election, claiming they proved Prime Minister Boris Johnson would "sell-out" the state-run health sector to US President Donald Trump. Health funding was a key campaign issue, and Johnson was repeatedly forced to deny the claim. Labour's then leader Jeremy Corbyn dismissed claims the leak was put online by Russia as a "conspiracy theory". Raab stopped short of accusing Moscow of direct involvement. But he said it was "almost certain... that Russian actors" were involved by putting the leaked documents online. Johnson and his ruling Conservative party won a huge majority in the election, allowing him to push through his Brexit deal to take Britain out of the European Union. Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee launched a probe into suspicions of Russian interference in the 2016 Brexit vote after concerns sparked by claims of meddling in the US presidential election won by Trump. It completed the report last year but publication was delayed first by the election, and then Johnson's failure to nominate new members to the committee. This finally happened last week and members had their first meeting on Thursday, where they agreed to publish the Russia report before next Wednesday.

UK, US and Canada accuse Russia of vaccine research hacking

coronavirus-vaccine-hack

Coronavirus Vaccine Hack, News on Coronavirus Vaccine Hack, stories on Coronavirus Vaccine Hack, articles on Coronavirus Vaccine Hack, Coronavirus Vaccine Hack stories at Wion, Coronavirus Vaccine Hack news, Coronavirus Vaccine Hack latest news

coronavirus vaccine-hack

US indicts two Chinese nationals for seeking to steal COVID-19 vaccine

UK, US and Canada accuse Russia of vaccine research hacking