Marking the first ever charges of this kind by the US against any other state, today the Justice Department of US announced the accusation of five Chinese military hackers for online spying against US nuclear power US steel, nuclear power and solar companies.
The five conspired are involved in hacking of major US companies like U.S. Steel, Westinghouse, Alcoa, Allegheny Technologies, the United Steel Workers Union and U.S. subsidiaries of SolarWorld, a German company and steal trade secrets that gives competitive advantage to Chinese state-owned companies. The Chinese hackers break into the computers of these companies and get information for the Chinese rival companies.
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According to FBI there are still many unknown cases that need to unearth and resolve for the sake of economy. In a press release FBI Director James B. Comey stated that, “For too long, the Chinese government has blatantly sought to use cyber espionage to obtain economic advantage for its state-owned industries. The indictment announced today is an important step. But there are many more victims, and there is much more to be done.”
For years the US Government and other chief security researchers have been tracking the plunders of Chinese hackers on U.S. companies. The re-owned Ugly Gorilla, famous for the invasions at hundreds of organizations in the last decade, is also found in the case of US companies.
The indictment included the five officers’ names, their unit, their photographs and the building in Shanghai where they worked. But there was little prospect of them ever being brought to justice in the U.S., officials said. Instead, the indictment seemed to be envisioned to send a message to Chinese leaders, who have deprived of that the People’s Liberation Army, is betrothed in economic spying and have challenged the U.S. to provide proof.
In response the Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Carlin said that, “Well today, we are providing proof. For the first time, we are exposing the faces and names behind the keyboards in Shanghai used to steal from American businesses”.
Carlin further said,” This indictment describes, with particularity, specific actions on specific days by specific actors to use their computers to steal information from across our economy,”
The Chinese officers identified as Wang Dong, Sun Kailiang, Wen Xinyu, Huang Zhenyu, and Gu Chunhui were officers in Unit 61398 of the Third Department of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army and wanted by FBI since long.