North Korean hackers target Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine

North Korean hackers were recently involved in targeting and attempting to steal information on Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.

The newspaper reported that South Korea’s National Intelligence Service informed South Korean lawmakers of the threat during a closed-door briefing earlier this week.

According to the Post, Ha Tae-keung, a lawmaker and member of the committee briefed on the issue, said the alleged hackers went after the COVID-19 vaccine and other Pfizer technology developed around the pandemic. He noted that South Korea had seen a 32 percent spike over the past year in cyberattacks from North Korea.

The news comes on the heels of both foreign and cyber criminal hackers stepping up efforts over the past year to go after COVID-19 vaccines and related medical research.