| The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security are reportedly preparing to issue a public warning that China’s most skilled hackers and spies are working to steal American research in the global effort to develop vaccines and treatments for the coronavirus. A draft of the forthcoming warning, which officials say is likely to be issued in the coming days, says China is seeking “valuable intellectual property and public health data through illicit means related to vaccines, treatments and testing.” The warning focuses on cybertheft and actions by “nontraditional actors.” The decision to issue a specific accusation against China’s state-run hacking teams is reportedly part of a broader deterrent strategy that also involves the U.S. Cyber Command and the NSA, current and former officials said.
The forthcoming warning is the latest effort by the Trump administration to blame China for being the source of the pandemic and exploiting its aftermath. While Secretary of State Mike Pompeo reiterated on Sunday that there was “a significant amount of evidence” that the coronavirus had emerged from a Chinese laboratory, a recent German intelligence assessment has reportedly cast doubt on that claim. Germany’s BND reportedly asked members of the U.S.-led “Five Eyes” intelligence alliance – the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand – for evidence to support the accusation. None supported Pompeo’s claim. The BND concluded that the U.S. accusations were a deliberate attempt to divert public attention away from President Donald Trump’s “own failures.”
Separately, the United States and Britain issued a joint warning last week that “health care bodies, pharmaceutical companies, academia, medical research organizations, and local governments” had been targeted. While it named no specific countries or targets, the wording was the kind used to describe the most active cyberoperators: Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea. However, according to private security firms, more than a dozen countries have redeployed military and intelligence hackers to glean whatever they can about other nations’ virus responses. These include U.S. allies like South Korea and nations that do not typically stand out for their cyber capabilities, such as Vietnam. New York Times, |