Hackers have been focusing cyberattacks on vaccine firms and health providers, the National Cyber Security Centre says.
The cybersecurity watchdog logged a record 777 hacking incidents in the year to September 2021, with one-fifth aimed at facilities crucial to the UK’s pandemic response.
It stepped in to thwart an attempted ransomware attack on the University of Oxford’s AstraZeneca vaccine research.
A successful attack would have caused ‘significant disruption’ to their research, the NCSC said.
It outlined cyberattack activity in its latest annual report.
It showed a concerted effort to disrupt the UK’s vaccine rollout this year.
It said some incidents were linked to state-sponsored attacks, from Russia and China.
The NCSC proactively beefed up health IT systems dealing with the Covid-19 vaccine rollout, such as the NHS and vaccine suppliers.
The cybersecurity agency is part of GCHQ.
