Is it true that the Sputnik V vaccine was created on the basis of the AstraZeneca formula stolen by spies?

On October 10, 2021, the British tabloid The Sun reported that spies obtained information about the production of the AstraZeneca vaccine and transferred it to Russia. We checked what arguments The Sun presented.

According to the tabloid, British secret services reported ministers that they have information about the activities of “one of Vladimir Putin’s spies,” who “personally” stole important data on the production of the AstraZeneca vaccine. The publication emphasizes that both this vaccine and Sputnik V are produced using similar technology - accordingly, according to intelligence, the Russian drug has become simply a copy of the British one. The Sun's message was retold by other British media in their publications: The Independent, Metro, Daily Mail and others.

Despite the loud statements and accusations, The Sun's publication lacks any specifics. The text does not contain any details about “Vladimir Putin’s spy”: what his name is and how old he is, what kind of special service he represented, how he was able to gain access to the formula, how he was able to transfer it to the developers of Sputnik V. There are also no even minimal details about the crime itself, when and how exactly it happened. The sources cited by The Sun are anonymous and have not presented their findings publicly. It is also significant that the world's largest media (including the main British media - the BBC) ignored this news, in contrast, for example, to accusations of a hacker attack on research centers in the UK, USA and Canada in July last year.

Russia has already responded to the message in the British tabloid. On the official website of the Sputnik V vaccine there was published press release calling the allegations in The Sun "yet another piece of fake news and blatant lies based on anonymous sources." The manufacturers of Sputnik V draw attention to the fact that although the vaccines are adenoviral, they are developed on the basis of different adenoviruses. In addition, the Russian drug was based on research related to the Ebola vaccine, which was conducted back in 2017. Moreover, back in December, the manufacturers of both vaccinations concluded agreement to develop a combination vaccine, now a drug passes tests in the context of which the theft of the formula seems illogical.

Press Secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov in his commentary named The Sun is "a very famous, deeply unscientific newspaper". In a sense, Peskov is right: despite the popularity of the tabloid, it is difficult to classify it as an authoritative source - publication caught to publish false information and accused in the use of illegal methods of data collection. Completely or partially incorrect publications of this tabloid were repeatedly checked by us - for example, about 500 year old shark, French ban call the pig Napoleon, ban photograph the Eiffel Tower at night, etc.

So far, The Sun has not provided any concrete evidence that Russian (or Russian-linked) spies stole the AstraZeneca vaccine formula and passed it on to the developers of Sputnik V. The dubious reputation of the publication, the absence of similar reports in many of the world's largest media, and the joint work of two research groups on a combined vaccine prevents people from believing a statement that is not supported by such evidence.

Most likely not true

What do our verdicts mean?

Read on the topic:

1. The Sun. Sputnicked. Russian spies ‘stole formula for Oxford/Astra Zeneca Covid jab and used it to create Sputnik vaccine’
2. Sputnik V Team Statement on Fake News in UK Media
3. BBC. Coronavirus: Russian spies target Covid-19 vaccine research