A medical worker takes a sample from a woman to test for the new coronavirus at a “walk-through” testing facility at a hospital in Seoul on March 16, 2020. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, April 2 (Korea Bizwire) — With the COVID-19 pandemic continuing to spread uncoontrollably, there have been a number of requests from countries all over the world for export of South Korean coronavirus test kits.
At the height of soaring demand for Korean test kits, it has been confirmed that there has been a recent hacking attempt aimed at the technology of a Korean diagnostic kit manufacturer in a foreign country.
According to government and industry officials, the identity of the hackers is still unclear. It is said that the company was able to prevent any intrusions due to strong online defense mechanisms.
Meanwhile, there was also a trade scam that caused financial damages due to the popularity of Korean test kits.
A hacker disguised as a trading company sent an e-mail to a company, saying, “The account number has changed.” The money was wired to the hacker’s temporary account.
The government is reportedly seeking to launch a task force with the National Intelligence Service Korea, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and COVID-19 related product developers.
The task force is expected to focus on measures to prevent internal information leaks or protect technologies of domestic companies that can respond to industrial espionage.
“Most test kit manufacturing companies are so small that they are vulnerable to online attacks,” a source in the diagnostic industry said, stressing the need for government-level support.
Currently, the Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA) recognizes hacking attempts by private companies and notifies them of hacking attempts.
KISA has been conducting real-time monitoring to block hacking attempts from abroad.
Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com)
