US urged to act immediately to save its systems from the ‘growing threat of Chinese cyber theft’
‘Nefarious actors’ tied to China target networks of US government contractors to exploit vulnerabilities in federal information systems, report says
The US government must urgently address growing threats posed by “nefarious actors” in China infiltrating American intelligence bodies and critical infrastructure systems through information technology systems and components, a congressional body warned.
“Nefarious actors linked to China have targeted the networks of private sector entities and private sector government contractors in order to obtain sensitive government information and to exploit vulnerabilities within federal information systems,” according to a report commissioned by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission.
“China has expanded its efforts to obtain economic advantage by pursuing knowledge of key technologies through corporate acquisitions and by using the economic power of Chinese companies as tools of the state,” the report said.
Internet of Things (IoT) and 5G mobile telecommunication networks “will expand the attack surface” of federal information and communication technology networks for China’s cyber criminals, “while decreasing time required to breach them”, according to the report.
Some of the report’s statistics highlight how much components made in China are part of the US government’s IT networks.