There’s a new name in the Covid conversation, and it comes with an unusual backstory: the ‘Cicada’ Covid variant BA.3.2. Nicknamed after an insect, famous for disappearing for years before suddenly resurfacing, this Covid is spreading quietly across the globe. It sounds alarming. But should it be?

Here’s what we know.

BA.3.2 was first detected in a respiratory sample collected on November 22, 2024, in South Africa, according to Fox News. It belongs to the Omicron family – the same broad lineage that’s been dominating Covid since late 2021 – but it’s accumulated an unusual number of changes along the way. As per a CNN report, kids may be more susceptible to the virus.

BA.3.2 carries around 70 to 75 mutations compared to the dominant strains currently circulating. That’s a lot. Those mutations, concentrated in the spike protein, are what’s catching scientists’ attention – because the spike is essentially the tool the virus uses to break into your cells.

The nickname “Cicada” was coined by evolutionary biologist T Ryan Gregory at the University of Guelph. When Omicron swept the globe in late 2021, genetic testing picked up five primary branches of its family tree. Four drove waves of infections worldwide. But BA.3 – the parent of BA.3.2 – was detected in 2022 and then mysteriously went silent. CNN Now it’s back. Just like the insect.

By February 11, 2026, ‘Cicada’ Covid BA.3.2 variant had been reported in at least 23 countries, with global detections increasing beginning in September 2025. The first US detection occurred on June 27, 2025, through the CDC’s Traveler-Based Genomic Surveillance programme, in a participant arriving from the Netherlands, according to the Fox News report.

Since then, the variant has been found in at least 25 US states, and wastewater data from the CDC shows BA.3.2 was present in at least 11% of samples nationally during the week ending March 21.

In Northern Europe, it grew more prevalent during the winter, with 30% of cases in Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands linked to the variant.

According to the WHO’s initial risk evaluation published in December 2025, BA.3.2 “has not shown a sustained growth advantage over any other co-circulating variant, and no data indicate increased severity, hospitalisations, or deaths associated with this variant”.

One notable pattern is emerging though. The variant appears to be affecting primarily children – though it is not causing more severe disease in kids or in adults. CNN Scientists see this as something worth studying, not panicking over.

The virus may evade existing shots partially. Early laboratory studies suggest that antibodies from vaccination or prior infection are less effective at neutralising BA.3.2 than other currently circulating Omicron strains. According to the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (Gavi), this is a concern, but it’s not new territory; Omicron subvariants have been pulling this trick for years.

Vaccines may not work as well against Cicada infection specifically, but they will still likely protect against severe illness.

Cicada Covid Variant BA.3.2 is spreading and it is worth keeping an eye on it. But panic isn’t warranted; at least not yet. The WHO’s current assessment is that BA.3.2 poses “low additional public health risk”. Testing and hygiene will go a long way in protection.