US Officials Of The Chinese Government's Confrontation Of Cyber Spy Campaigns Expand

Nathaniel Fick, US ambassador to cyberspace and digital policy, (photo: x @mick_or_mack)

JAKARTA - US officials confronted the Chinese government in Beijing last month about a widespread cyber spy campaign in which the hacker from the bamboo curtain country had hacked dozens of critical American infrastructure organizations, a senior US cyber official said.

In a campaign called Volt Typhoon, American officials said China wanted to take advantage of its access to US organizations in terms of war or conflict - in response to rising US-China tensions related to Taiwan. China has previously rejected such accusations as baseless.

"We have had direct conversations with China about this," said Nathaniel Fick, US ambassador to cyberspace and digital policy, in an interview at the RSA Conference in San Francisco on Tuesday, May 7.

"We lifted it directly with the Chinese government at a very senior level, and explained that this type of behavior is dangerous, escalative, and unacceptable," Fick said. He said he spoke with Chinese officials with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who was in China from April 24 to 26.

When asked how China responded, Fick said: "Just as they said before... They previously said that it was a hoax by various US agencies to get more budget dollars."

The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday, May 8.

The US and some of its allies have warned about the campaign a year ago, warning that China could launch cyberattacks on oil and gas pipelines, rail systems, and other critical industries.

It is unclear how many US organizations have been compromised by hackers. "However, every number we provide is likely a low estimate," Brandon Wales, executive director of the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency, said at a separate media conference at the same conference.

"China's targeting of our critical infrastructure is broad," he added. "This is aimed at large numbers of small and medium enterprises that are potentially critical in individual supply chains, or are only able to cause panic in communities somewhere in the country."