As reported by The Hill, deputy assistant director of the FBI’s Cyber Division, Tonya Ugoretz, said that “Countries have a very high interest in information on the virus … such as information on a vaccine. We have certainly seen reconnaissance activity and some intrusions into some of those institutions, especially those who have identified themselves as working on COVID research.”

Health agencies such as the World Health Organization and Department of Health and Human Services have increasingly found themselves the subject of hacking attacks, Ugoretz said, while IC3 has also seen a rise in the number of malicious emails highlighting COVID-19 to trick users into clicking dangerous links. The German government, for example, may have fallen foul of such a scam, potentially losing millions of euros earmarked for COVID-19 financial aid.

The news comes after a group of federal agencies, including the FBI, put out a joint alert on Wednesday warning of potential cyber threats from North Korea. However, Ugoretz said it’s important “not to read into the timing” of the alert, and instead that it was designed to “shine a light” on some of the fresh cyber risks now facing the US.