Washington: US and British officials have announced sanctions, including criminal charges, against hackers linked to the Chinese government, saying they have targeted US officials, journalists, companies, pro-democracy activists and a British election watchdog with government support. . Officials said the campaign, which began in 2010, aimed to harass critics of the Chinese government, steal business intelligence from American companies and spy on top leaders.
Big revelation happened
Officials in Western countries have revealed the campaign of a hacker group named ‘APT31’. The US Justice Department has framed charges against seven hackers living in China. At the same time, the British government has imposed sanctions on two people in connection with a breach related to China’s access to information available to the Election Commission about millions of its voters.
People were targeted all over the world
“The Justice Department will not tolerate the Chinese government’s efforts to intimidate Americans who serve the public, silence dissidents protected by U.S. law, or steal information from American businesses,” U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement. Prosecutors said that as part of the cyber intrusion campaign, hackers sent more than 10,000 emails to targets around the world that appeared to be from prominent journalists but actually contained hacking code.
China’s ambassador will be summoned
Britain imposed the sanctions after it announced in August last year that “hostile forces” had gained access to its servers between 2021 and 2022. At that time the Election Commission had said that these figures included the names and addresses of its registered voters. Britain’s Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden said his government would summon China’s ambassador over these actions. China’s Foreign Ministry had said before the announcement that countries should base their claims on evidence rather than “defaming” others without factual basis.
New Zealand’s Parliament was targeted
Meanwhile, New Zealand’s security minister said on Tuesday that hackers affiliated with the Chinese government launched a government-sponsored campaign to target his country’s parliament in 2021. “It is unacceptable for a cyber-supported espionage campaign to interfere with democratic institutions and processes anywhere in the world,” New Zealand Minister Judith Collins said in a statement to the media. AP
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