China says U.S. launched advanced cyberattacks on critical infrastructure
China accused the United States National Security Agency (NSA) on Tuesday of launching “advanced” cyberattacks during the Asian Winter Games in February, targeting essential industries.
Police in the northeastern city of Harbin said three alleged NSA agents were added to a wanted list and also accused the University of California and Virginia Tech of being involved in the attacks after carrying out investigations, according to a report by state news agency Xinhua on Tuesday.
The NSA agents were identified by Xinhua as Katheryn A. Wilson, Robert J. Snelling and Stephen W. Johnson. The three were also found to have “repeatedly carried out cyber-attacks on China’s critical information infrastructure and participated in cyber-attacks on Huawei [RIC:RIC:HWT.UL] and other enterprises.”
It did not specify how the two American universities were involved.
China’s foreign ministry later confirmed the attacks and said Beijing had raised its concerns with the United States.
“We urge the U.S. to take a responsible attitude on the issue of cybersecurity and … stop unprovoked smears and attacks on China,” ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said at a regular news briefing.
The announcement comes as the world’s two largest economies spiral deeper into a trade war that has already spurred travel warnings for Chinese tourists going to the U.S. and halted imports of U.S. films into China.
“The U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) launched cyberattacks against important industries such as energy, transportation, water conservancy, communications, and national defence research institutions in Heilongjiang province,” Xinhua said, citing the Harbin city public security bureau.
The attacks had “the intention of sabotaging China’s critical information infrastructure, causing social disorder, and stealing important confidential information”, it added.
The NSA operations took place during the Winter Games and were “suspected of activating specific pre-installed backdoors” in Microsoft Windows operating systems on specific devices in Heilongjiang, Xinhua said, adding that the NSA purchased IP addresses in different countries and “anonymously” rented a large number of network servers, including in Europe and Asia,” in order to cover its tracks.
On the other hand, Washington announced indictments last month against a slew of alleged Chinese hackers who targeted the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, the U.S. Department of Commerce, and the foreign ministries of Taiwan, South Korea, India, and Indonesia.
Beijing, however, denies all involvement in overseas cyber espionage.
