North Korea has initiated human trials of a COVID-19 vaccine – using information stolen from Western pharmacists by a dedicated team of hackers, according to a report.
The Hermit Kingdom is already in sentence 3 in trials for its shot, produced even when the secret nation refuses to admit any confirmed case, an informant told the Daily NK.
The insider confirmed to the media that it was based on the work of a “hacker organization” specializing in stealing vaccine information, alerting the United States, United Kingdom and South Korea last year.
The hacker unit – called Bureau 325 – operates under the Reconnaissance General Bureau, while receiving direct orders from the Central Committee, the source in North Korea said.
He reports directly to Kim Yo Jong, the feared sister of Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un, who also helps manage the group’s activities, the report said.
“Due to the nature of cyber attacks, it is difficult to confirm exactly what type of data North Korea has stolen,” cybersecurity expert Mun Chong Hyun told the Daily NK.
But at least some of the stolen knowledge appeared to be at the heart of the new vaccine, which is being developed by the Kim Il Sung University Biological Industry Research Center, the source told the Daily NK.
No matter how much wisdom they stole, it still may not be enough for a successful COVID-19 take, however.
“They secured sufficient know-how through hacking, but they do not have the capacity to produce [vaccines]”, Said the source of the outlet.
“But because the supreme leader [Kim Jong Un] directly ordered a vaccine to be developed independently, they have to show something in the way of results, ”added the source.