The US government has charged seven Chinese nationals with computer intrusions targeting US businesses and individuals and perceived critics of Beijing, an indictment unsealed on Monday revealed.
The seven individuals are alleged to be involved with a China-based "hacking group that spent approximately 14 years targeting U.S. and foreign critics, businesses and political officials in furtherance of [China's] economic espionage and foreign intelligence objectives," a US Department of Justice (DoJ) statement read.
The announcement came as Britain and New Zealand revealed that their democratic institutions and lawmakers had also been targeted by Chinese state-sponsored hackers.
"This case serves as a reminder of the ends to which the Chinese government is willing to go to target and intimidate its critics, including launching malicious cyber operations aimed at threatening the national security of the United States and our allies," US Attorney General Merrick Garland said.
"These allegations pull back the curtain on China's vast illegal hacking operation that targeted sensitive data from U.S. elected and government officials, journalists and academics; valuable information from American companies; and political dissidents in America and abroad," said Breon Peace, US attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
"Their sinister scheme victimized thousands of people and entities across the world, and lasted for well over a decade."
US authorities said that the hacking group, known as the APT31 Group within the cyber security community, "targeted thousands of U.S. and foreign individuals and companies."
The US Treasury meanwhile sanctioned Wuhan Xiaoruizhi Science and Technology Company, which it said is a "China-based Ministry of State Security (MSS) front company that has served as cover for multiple malicious cyber operations."
It also designated two of the seven Chinese nationals indicted by the DoJ, Zhao Guangzong and Ni Gaobin, "for their roles in malicious cyber operations targeting U.S. entities that operate within U.S. critical infrastructure sectors, directly endangering U.S. national security."
