The United Kingdom and the United States have accused China of conducting ‘malicious’ cyber attacks, including targeting the UK’s Electoral Commission and members of Parliament. The accusations have raised tensions and could lead to China being officially declared a ‘threat’ by the UK.
The United Kingdom and the United States have jointly accused China of carrying out “malicious” cyber attacks on a global scale. British authorities have specifically blamed China for attacks on the UK’s Electoral Commission and for conducting surveillance on the email accounts of Parliament members. These activities have raised concerns that the stolen information might be used against critics of the Chinese government within the UK. Concurrently, in the US, officials have identified the APT31 hacking group, supposedly supported by the Chinese government, as targeting sensitive information for over a decade.
US Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco characterized the hacking operation as an effort to “repress critics of the Chinese regime, compromise government institutions, and steal trade secrets.” As a retaliatory measure, the US has charged seven individuals allegedly involved with the Chinese hacking operations, while the UK has sanctioned a company and two individuals connected to the APT31 group. Despite these actions, some British Members of Parliament have voiced the need for more stringent measures against China.
UK Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden has indicated the possibility of officially declaring China a “threat” in light of these cyber attacks. The National Cyber Security Centre in the UK believes that Chinese state-affiliated hackers infiltrated the Electoral Commission’s voter data, sparking concerns of potential espionage. China, however, has denied these allegations, dismissing them as “completely fabricated and malicious slanders” while asserting its opposition to cyber attacks. This situation marks a notable escalation in the cybersecurity tensions between the West and China.
