Hackers controlled by the Chinese government have broken into the US Treasury Department, which administers economic sanctions against countries and individuals, one of the United Statesʼ most powerful tools for national security.
This is reported by The Washington Post (WP).
The attack reflects Beijingʼs determination to obtain intelligence, including on upcoming sanctions, the officials said, with the Chinese governmentʼs greatest interest being Chinese companies that Washington could impose restrictions on.
The cyberattack also compromised the Financial Research Department of the Ministry of Finance. The extent of the damage from the hack is being assessed by experts. The documents accessed by the attackers were not classified. The attack was likely caused by a weak cybersecurity system.
According to WP, relations between China and the United States remain tense as US President-elect Donald Trump threatens Beijing with tougher tariffs, particularly on imports from China. This could trigger a global trade war, the publication notes.
Chinaʼs Foreign Ministry rejected the countryʼs accusations of hacking, calling the claims "baseless" and adding that Beijing "has always opposed all forms of hacker attacks."
- The “major incident,” as the U.S. Treasury Department calls it, occurred in early December. It is being investigated by the FBI and other agencies. Based on the evidence gathered so far, U.S. officials believe the hacker was an Advanced Persistent Threat (APT).
- In November, FBI uncovered a “broad and significant” Chinese government cyber espionage campaign that stole information from American politicians.
- In October, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Chinese government had infiltrated the networks of US ISPs, likely gaining access to information from systems the federal government uses for court-ordered wiretapping. The cyberattack was carried out by the hacking group Salt Typhoon and may have lasted more than a month.
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