Beijing has ramped up espionage warnings as ties with the US and other Western nations deteriorate
\n Beijing
\nChina on Sunday accused the United States of conducting cyberattacks on Beijing\u2019s national time centre that could have caused severe damage to critical financial and telecommunications infrastructure.
\nBeijing has stepped up espionage warnings in recent years as relations with the United States and other Western nations have worsened.
\nChinese authorities found \u201cirrefutable evidence\u201d of efforts by the US National Security Agency (NSA) to hack the National Time Service Center, between 2022 and 2024, according to a statement published on the official Ministry of State Security WeChat account.
\nThe facility is responsible for coordinating clocks around the country used by everything from computer servers to train stations and power grids.
\nThe ministry accused the NSA of exploiting weaknesses in the messaging service of an unspecified foreign mobile phone brand in order to steal login credentials from employees at the time centre.
\nThe attacks could have jeopardised power grids, transport, and even space launches, the ministry said.
\nChinese authorities have since \u201csevered attack chains, upgraded protective measures, and eliminated potential threats.\u201d
\n\u201cIn recent years, the United States has aggressively pursued cyber hegemony, repeatedly trampling on international cyberspace rules,\u201d the ministry said in its statement.
\nIt urged Chinese citizens to be vigilant of foreign attacks and to report suspicious activity to the authorities.
\nWestern countries have accused hacker groups allegedly supported by China of conducting a global cyber espionage campaign against figures critical of Beijing, democratic institutions, and companies in various sensitive sectors. Washington said last year that a China state-sponsored actor was behind a cyber breach at the US Treasury Department.
\nBeijing at the time called the accusations \u201cgroundless\u201d.
\n\u201cIronclad evidence proves that the United States is the true \u2018hacker empire\u2019 and the greatest source of chaos in cyberspace,\u201d the Chinese Ministry of State Security said Sunday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Beijing has ramped up espionage warnings as ties with the US and other Western nations deteriorate Beijing China on Sunday accused the United States of conducting cyberattacks on Beijing\u2019s national time centre that could have caused severe damage to critical financial and telecommunications infrastructure. Beijing has stepped up espionage warnings in recent years as relations […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":509622,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-509603","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n