China accuses US of launching ‘advanced’ cyberattacks

On Tuesday, China accused the United States National Security Agency (NSA) of conducting “advanced” cyberattacks in February during the Asian Winter Games, focusing on critical industries.

Authorities in the northeastern city of Harbin reported that three suspected NSA agents were added to a wanted list and also implicated the University of California and Virginia Tech in the attacks after completing investigations, as stated by the 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 and other enterprises.”

It did not specify how the two American universities were involved.The U.S. Embassy in China did not respond to an emailed request for comment. 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 cyber security and … stop unprovoked smears and attacks on China,” ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said at a regular news briefing.

The intricate accusations emerge as the world’s two biggest economies sink further into a trade conflict that has already triggered travel advisories for Chinese visitors heading to the U.S. and put a stop to U.S. film imports into China.

“The U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) launched cyber attacks 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.

Xinhua reported that NSA operations during the Winter Games involved activating backdoors in Microsoft Windows to steal athletes’ personal data. The NSA masked its actions by renting servers globally, while the U.S. accused Chinese hackers of similar attacks. Beijing denied involvement.