The United States, Britain, and New Zealand have accused Beijing-backed cyber groups of being behind a series of attacks against lawmakers and key democratic institutions, allegations that China denied.
In rare and detailed public accusations against China, Washington, London, and Wellington described a series of cyber breaches over the last decade, which appeared to be a concerted effort to hold Beijing accountable.
The US Justice Department has taken a significant step, charging seven Chinese nationals over what it claims was a 14-year “prolific global hacking operation”. This operation was allegedly designed to aid China’s “economic espionage and foreign intelligence objectives”, underscoring the global impact of these cyber attacks.
On Monday, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said that the campaign involved:
- More than 10,000 emails.
- Targeting US and foreign-based businesses.
- Politicians.
- Candidates for elected office and journalists.
Washington said a unit, dubbed APT31, was behind the attacks, describing it as a “cyber espionage program” run by China’s powerful Ministry of State Security out of the central city of Wuhan.
The hackers employed sophisticated methods, gaining unauthorized access to “email accounts, cloud storage accounts, and telephone call records”. The US Justice Department revealed that they had been monitoring some accounts for “years”, painting a grim picture of the extent of these cyber attacks.
Hours later, London said that from 2021 to 2022, the same APT31 group had targeted UK lawmakers’ accounts, including many who were critical of Beijing’s policies.
With Britain expected to hold a general election within months, UK Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden also made a shock announcement that “a Chinese state-affiliated entity” had likely “compromised” the country’s Electoral Commission.
