Four Senators sent a letter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the DHS Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) due to the new advisory informing COVID-19 research institutions that hackers connected to China are carrying out attacks to get access to COVID-19 vaccine and research reports.
On May 13, 2020, CISA and the FBI published a joint alert alerting institutions in the medical care, pharmaceutical, and research fields that they are top targets for cyber-terrorists. Hacking groups connected to the People’s Republic of China have been seeking to enter the networks of American firms to acquire intellectual property, public health facts, and details connected to COVID-19 tests, probable vaccines, and treatment data.
China’s campaigns to target these industries create a major threat to the COVID-19 resolution of our country. The prospective theft of these facts jeopardizes the offering of safe, potent, and efficient treatment solutions.
In the correspondence, Thom Tills (R-NC), John Cornyn (R-TX), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Ben Sasse (R-NE) lauded the work of the two agencies to bring up awareness of the risk and look into the attacks. It is completely improper for Chinese government-connected hackers to make an effort to steal or disturb crucial research from agencies and establishments who are working on necessary diagnostics, cures, and treatments.
The Senators repeated the suggestions presented by the two organizations and have exhorted all U.S. organizations and academic associations associated in the COVID-19 response to make the best use of the solutions proposed by the agencies to strengthen their cybersecurity protection and to additionally make certain to inform the FBI right away regarding any pursued attacks.
The Senators stated that they stand all set and keen to help the two agencies in their responsibility to take care of the threat and avert the stealing of intellectual property from U.S. companies, and have questioned how they could best assist the two agencies.
The Senators what more statutory tools or authorities the agencies need to battle the state-sponsored hacking of U.S. firms more appropriately, and what other financial sources and appropriations are needed to make it possible for the agencies to check further attempts of state-sponsored cybercriminals to get sensitive research facts.
The Senators have likewise inquired data on the steps the two agencies are undertaking to notify U.S. firms and research institutions concerning the danger of attack, and how both agencies are assisting firms and research bodies to better their cybersecurity defenses and stop more intrusions and stealing of information.
The Senators expect answers to the concerns in a classified meeting with their employees on or before June 20, 2020.
