Media giant News Corp said the company’s email accounts were comprised including data of journalists.
The media company said the cyberattack had occurred last month as hackers targeted emails and documents.
The company told US market regulators that, “company’s preliminary analysis indicates that foreign government involvement may be associated with this activity, and that data was taken,” as cybersecurity firm Mandiant which is investigating the hacking pointed out that “those behind this activity have a China nexus”.
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The company said business email accounts and documents from News Corp headquarters, Dow Jones, News UK, New York Post and News Technology Services were targeted.
“We believe they are likely involved in espionage activities to collect intelligence to benefit China’s interests,” the cybersecurity firm said in a statement.
The Chinese embassy in Washington added that it hadn’t looked at the details but hoped it was based on “professional, responsible and evidence-based approach” instead of “allegations based on speculations”.
Chinese hackers have repeatedly been blamed by US officials for cybercrime in the country.
FBI director Christopher Wray recently had said “There is so much good we could do with a responsible Chinese government: crackdown on cybercriminals, stop money launderers, reduce opioid overdose deaths,” however he asserted that “at the FBI, we’re focused on the reality of the Chinese government today.”
Wray said there were over 2,000 cases of the “Chinese government trying to steal our information or technology” while adding that “no country that presents a broader threat to our ideas, our innovation, and our economic security than China”.
“China may be the first government to combine authoritarian ambitions with cutting-edge technical capability,” Wray said, adding, “It’s like the surveillance nightmare of East Germany combined with the tech of Silicon Valley.”
(With inputs from Agencies)
