[ti:US, Britain, Canada Accuse Russia of Hacking Coronavirus Research] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]The United States, Britain and Canada have accused Russia of [00:05.40]trying to steal Western research into coronavirus vaccines and treatments. [00:12.68]In a joint statement, the three governments said Thursday [00:16.88]the hacking operation started in February and has continued since. [00:23.52]They identified the Russian hacking group APT29, [00:28.12]also known as Cozy Bear, as being behind the attacks. [00:34.76]Anne Neuberger is cybersecurity director at the U.S. National Security Agency. [00:42.80]She said, "APT29 has a long history of targeting governmental, [00:48.84]diplomatic, think tank, health care and energy organizations [00:54.44]for intelligence gain, so we encourage everyone to take this threat seriously." [01:03.36]British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab added, [01:07.24]"It is completely unacceptable that the Russian Intelligence Services [01:12.28]are targeting those working to combat the coronavirus pandemic.″ [01:18.16]Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, [01:22.80]rejected the accusation, saying: "Russia has nothing to do with those attempts." [01:30.32]He added, "We don't have information about who may have hacked [01:34.84]pharmaceutical companies and research centers in Britain." [01:40.36]Cozy Bear and another group called Fancy Bear [01:44.60]were accused by U.S. intelligence officials [01:48.16]of hacking into the U.S. Democratic Party email server. [01:53.68]Russia denied any involvement in the incident, [01:57.48]which took place during the 2016 U.S. presidential election. [02:04.20]The three Western allies first warned in May that state-backed hackers [02:10.32]were trying to steal coronavirus research. [02:14.92]But at the time, they did not identify who was behind the attack. [02:22.16]The announcement came from Britain's National Cyber Security Centre, [02:26.84]the Canadian Communication Security Establishment, [02:30.36]and the National Security Agency. [02:34.76]The coordinated move seemed designed to add more weight [02:39.44]and gravity to the accusation [02:42.20]– hopefully leading targets of the hackers to take protective action. [02:49.32]As COVID-19 spreads to more than 180 countries and territories, [02:55.32]efforts to create an effective vaccine and treatment have expanded worldwide. [03:02.80]Johns Hopkins University's Coronavirus Resource Center estimates that, as of July 16, [03:11.08]COVID-19 has infected more than 13 million people and killed 580,000. [03:19.96]The World Health Organization has listed several human trials in Britain [03:25.28]and the United States among the most promising candidates to produce an effective vaccine. [03:33.04]These include major development programs [03:36.16]by the companies AstraZeneca and Moderna. [03:41.16]Russian officials, however, have said the country's own vaccine is far more developed. [03:48.68]Russia has claimed it could be the first country to start giving vaccines to people. [03:56.56]U.S. officials have also accused China of trying to steal vaccine research. [04:03.72]Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Wray said last week, [04:08.52]"At this very moment, China is working to compromise American health care organizations, [04:15.12]pharmaceutical companies, and academic institutions conducting essential COVID-19 research." [04:24.76]Mike Chapple is an information technology expert at the University of Notre Dame. [04:31.32]He said, "It's reasonable to conclude that the coronavirus is the No. 1 priority [04:37.80]of every intelligence agency around the world right now.″ [04:44.36]I'm Jonathan Evans. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM