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On Monday, news emerged of a major cybersecurity breach involving the US Treasury Department, allegedly orchestrated by a Chinese state-sponsored group. According to a letter shared with the Senate banking committee and reviewed by the Financial Times, the incident came to light on December 8. BeyondTrust, a software company, informed the Treasury that a hacker had penetrated several remote government workstations by securing a security key, accessing unclassified documents stored on them.
The letter specified that the attack has been linked to a Chinese state-sponsored Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) actor. The Treasury Department classifies such intrusions as significant cybersecurity events, in line with its policy.
The Department has been actively collaborating with the FBI and other intelligence community members to assess the hack’s ramifications. Fortunately, there is currently no evidence suggesting that the hackers still have access to Treasury information.
In a separate announcement on Monday, a Treasury spokesperson emphasized the agency’s commitment to safeguarding its systems and data from threats. “We take all threats against our systems very seriously,” the spokesperson stated. They also reaffirmed the Treasury’s dedication to working with both private and public sector partners to shield the financial system from malicious actors.
Meanwhile, Liu Pengyu, representing the Chinese embassy in Washington, responded, expressing a wish for all parties to approach cyber incidents responsibly. He called for determinations to be backed by substantial evidence, avoiding baseless speculation and blame. “The US needs to cease using cybersecurity as a tool to vilify China and spreading misinformation about alleged Chinese hacking threats,” Pengyu added.
This incident is the latest in a series of cybersecurity breaches targeting US entities, reportedly linked to Chinese actors. Back in October, the Biden administration acknowledged an investigation into unauthorized access of commercial telecom infrastructures by individuals associated with the People’s Republic of China. The attack reportedly focused on the phones of President-elect Donald Trump and his running mate JD Vance during the lead-up to the US election.
Highlighting the concern’s severity, the Commerce Department proposed restrictions in September to curtail China’s access to US data by considering a ban on Chinese software and hardware in vehicles with internet connectivity.
