‘Chinese hackers stole millions of US government money’ | Abroad

The total size of the cyber break-ins is not yet clear. “It would be crazy to think that this group didn’t target all 50 states,” said Roy Dotson, Secret Service fraud recovery coordinator.

The Chinese hacker group APT41, also known as Winnti, Barium or Wicked Panda, is believed to be responsible for the cyber break-ins. There are currently more than 1,000 investigations into both international and domestic criminals who defraud public benefit programs and APT41 is a “major player,” the Secret Service said.

APT41 is a highly active group of cybercriminals that, according to experts, conducts a combination of government-sponsored cyber intrusions and financially motivated data breaches.

It is not clear whether APT41 acted on behalf of the Chinese government in this case, or whether the latter simply turned a blind eye, but according to several US officials, it is a disturbing development that has serious consequences for national security.

According to Nathaniel Fick, chief of the US State Department’s Office of Cyberspace and Digital Policy, cyberespionage has long been a Chinese national priority to strengthen the country’s geopolitical position. “The United States is the number one target because we are the number one competitor,” Fick told NBC News. “It’s a really comprehensive, multi-year, well-thought-out, well-funded, well-planned, well-executed strategy.”

According to experts, China’s model of “state-sponsored” hackers is a network of semi-independent groups carrying out espionage jobs for the government. The Chinese government can instruct a hacker group to attack a specific target. APT41 fits this model and is considered a very prolific Chinese intelligence agency, which also commits financial crimes.

Several members of the hacker group were indicted by the US Department of Justice in 2019 and 2020 for spying on more than 100 companies, including software development companies, telecommunications providers, social media companies and video game developers. “Unfortunately, the Chinese Communist Party has chosen a different path to make China safe from cybercriminals as long as they attack computers outside of China and steal intellectual property that is useful to China,” former deputy attorney general Jeffrey Rosen said at the time.

China’s embassy in Washington said in a statement that China has always “strongly opposed and acted vigorously against all forms of cyber theft and hacking,” and that the country has refuted “unfounded allegations” regarding cybersecurity.