The recently suspected North Korean hacker allegedly also tried to attack at least 9 health organizations, including pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson and vaccine developer Novavax Inc.
Following the incident, a total of 4 investigators revealed that the hacking attempt began in September, and used web domains that mimic online entry portals to deceive employees of targeted organizations to reveal their passwords.
The suspect even targeted British drug and vaccine manufacturer AstraZeneca, which was the first to receive such an attack.
Although North Korea has not confirmed a Covid-19 infection in the country, the South Korean National Intelligence Service says the outbreak there is unavoidable as they trade with China before closing the border in late January.
According to the survey, the web domain used by the attacker was previously identified by the US government and security researchers as part of a North Korean hacking campaign.
Other targets identified as hacking victims include Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Tuebingen University in Germany, and 4 South Korean pharmaceutical firms Genexine Inc, Boryung Pharma Co Ltd, Shin Poong Pharm Co Ltd and Celltrion Inc.
However, the North Korean Mission to the UN in New York wants to submit any comments on the issue and has even denied that they were involved in cyber attacks before.
