ReutersA series of cyberattacks is underway aimed at the companies and government organizations that will be distributing coronavirus vaccines around the world, IBM’s cybersecurity division has found, though it is unclear whether the goal is to steal the technology for keeping the vaccines refrigerated in transit or to sabotage the movements.
The findings were alarming enough that the Department of Homeland Security issued its own warning Thursday about the threat.
Both the IBM researchers and the department’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said the attacks appear intended to steal the network credentials of corporate executives and officials at global organizations involved in the refrigeration process necessary to protect vaccine doses.
Josh Corman, a coronavirus strategist at the cybersecurity agency, said in a statement that the IBM report was a reminder of the need for “cybersecurity diligence at each step in the vaccine supply chain.” He urged organizations “involved in vaccine storage and transport to harden attack surfaces, particularly in cold storage operation.”
Researchers for IBM Security X-Force, the company’s cybersecurity arm, said they believed that the attacks were sophisticated enough that they pointed to a government-sponsored initiative, not a rogue criminal operation aimed purely at monetary gain. But they could not identify which country might be behind them.
No matter who conducted the attacks, they underscore how everything about coronavirus vaccines — how to make them, test them and move them — has become vital information around the globe. A year ago, nations including Russia and China were focusing their covert efforts on stealing secrets about hypersonic missiles and artificial intelligence advances; six months ago, intelligence agencies shifted their focus to obtaining, or defending, proprietary vaccine research.
With several vaccines on the verge of moving from clinical trials into wider use, the IBM discovery suggests that the main target of state-employed hackers is now the infrastructure of delivering the vaccines to billions of people around the globe.
The cyberattackers “were working to get access to how the vaccine is shipped, stored, kept cold and delivered,” said Nick Rossmann, who heads IBM’s global threat intelligence team. “We think whoever is behind this wanted to be able to understand the entire cold chain process.”
The findings were alarming enough that the Department of Homeland Security issued its own warning Thursday about the threat.
Both the IBM researchers and the department’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said the attacks appear intended to steal the network credentials of corporate executives and officials at global organizations involved in the refrigeration process necessary to protect vaccine doses.
"Cyberattackers are working to get access to how the vaccine is shipped, stored, kept cold and delivered."
Josh Corman, a coronavirus strategist at the cybersecurity agency, said in a statement that the IBM report was a reminder of the need for “cybersecurity diligence at each step in the vaccine supply chain.” He urged organizations “involved in vaccine storage and transport to harden attack surfaces, particularly in cold storage operation.”
Researchers for IBM Security X-Force, the company’s cybersecurity arm, said they believed that the attacks were sophisticated enough that they pointed to a government-sponsored initiative, not a rogue criminal operation aimed purely at monetary gain. But they could not identify which country might be behind them.
No matter who conducted the attacks, they underscore how everything about coronavirus vaccines — how to make them, test them and move them — has become vital information around the globe. A year ago, nations including Russia and China were focusing their covert efforts on stealing secrets about hypersonic missiles and artificial intelligence advances; six months ago, intelligence agencies shifted their focus to obtaining, or defending, proprietary vaccine research.
With several vaccines on the verge of moving from clinical trials into wider use, the IBM discovery suggests that the main target of state-employed hackers is now the infrastructure of delivering the vaccines to billions of people around the globe.
The cyberattackers “were working to get access to how the vaccine is shipped, stored, kept cold and delivered,” said Nick Rossmann, who heads IBM’s global threat intelligence team. “We think whoever is behind this wanted to be able to understand the entire cold chain process.”
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