Biden administration indicts and sanctions Chinese hackers accused of sweeping espionage campaign against US targets

The Biden administration on Monday announced a criminal indictment and sanctions against multiple Chinese hackers for allegedly conducting sweeping hacks against US companies and government officials on behalf of China’s civilian intelligence service.

The Biden administration on Monday announced a criminal indictment and sanctions against multiple Chinese hackers for allegedly conducting sweeping hacks against US companies and government officials on behalf of China’s civilian intelligence service. Seven Chinese men were indicted in US federal court in the Eastern District of New York and accused of being part of a yearslong hacking effort that resulted in the “confirmed and potential compromise” of data belonging to millions of Americans, some of “which could be released in support of malign influence” targeting US democratic institutions, the indictment states. The hackers targeted “some of America’s most vital critical infrastructure sectors,” including a defense contractor that made flight simulators for the US military, the US Treasury Department said while announcing sanctions against two of the men. The State Department announced a reward of up to $10 million for information on the seven men. The alleged hacking effort was vast. Over the course of just a few months in 2018, the hackers sent more than 10,000 malicious emails to senior US officials (and their advisers) in the White House, Justice Department and other agencies, and to Democratic and Republican senators in more than 10 states, according to the indictment. The hackers allegedly posed as prominent US journalists as a ruse to try to get targets to click on the emails. The US announcement came as the British government said the same broad group of Chinese hackers had “highly likely” breached the UK Electoral Commission in 2021 and 2022, and had conducted digital reconnaissance against British parliamentarians. The activity did not affect the UK electoral process or voters’ rights or registration, Britain’s foreign office said. CNN first reported earlier Monday that the US government actions were imminent.