US authorities on Wednesday alerted US researchers to Chinese-backed pirates trying to steal research and intellectual property related to treatments for Corona virus (Covid-19) and its vaccines.

A joint statement came to the FBI and the Cyber ​​Security and Infrastructure Security Agency. Organizations conducting epidemic research have been alerted of likely targeting and network breaches by China.

The statement continued that attempts were made to these entities aiming at searching for valuable intellectual properties and public health data related to vaccines, treatments and examinations from networks and crews related to research on Covid-19.

A threat to US efforts
The statement added that what China is doing to target these sectors poses a major threat to America's response to Covid-19.

The FBI and the agency have not given any evidence or examples of the accusation against China, but they have urged all institutions conducting research in these areas to enhance their cyber security and take measures to address internal threats to prevent secretly accessing or stealing material related to Covid-19.

The US administration accuses information pirates, researchers and students of stealing information from colleges and public laboratories in which they work.

Chinese hackers
The Wall Street Journal and New York Times have reported that the FBI and cyber security experts believe Chinese hackers are trying to steal research on developing a vaccine against the emerging corona virus.

In Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Legian rejected the US "allegations", saying that China firmly opposes all cyber attacks. 

"We are leading the world in research to find a cure-and-vaccine for Covid-19. It is immoral to target China with rumors and slanders in the absence of any evidence," Zhao said.

Chinese
denounce The Chinese embassy in Washington has condemned the American accusations, describing them as "lies". "The FBI issued a warning based on mere theory, without any evidence," she said in a statement. She added that the US accusation undermined "the existing international cooperation against the epidemic."

The latest US accusation would exacerbate the tension in US-China relations since the emergence of the new Corona virus in late 2019 in Wuhan, China.

US President Donald Trump accuses China of delaying reporting the epidemic to the international community, and of lying about the true number of deaths on its soil.

It also holds Beijing "responsible" for the outbreak in the world, the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people and the unprecedented current economic crisis.

The US President and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo make public statements claiming that Beijing has kept a secret from an incident at the Bohan Laboratory that led to the outbreak.