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US President Barack Obama on Friday warned that cyber attacks from China were “not acceptable”, a message he is set to deliver when President Xi Jinping visits the White House this month.
Obama said state actors needed to agree rules of the road in order to stop cyber crises from escalating.
“There comes a point at which we consider this a core national security threat and will treat it as such,” he said.
Ahead of Xi’s state visit, Obama said “we have been very clear to the Chinese that there are certain practices that they are engaging in, that we know are emanating from China and are not acceptable”.
Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Washington for a visit beset by tensions over cyber security, maritime claims and China’s growing assertiveness.
In a notably tough and confrontational tone, Obama said states could “chose to make this [cyberattacks] an area of competition”.

But, he warned, if that path was chosen, it would be a competition that “I guarantee you we will win if we have to”.
“Alternatively we can come to an agreement in which we say this isn’t helping anybody, lets instead have some basic rules of the road," he said.
Following a spate of hack on US companies and government agencies that have been widely blamed on China, administration officials have pointedly let it be known that Chinese firms and individuals could face sanctions.
READ MORE: US may impose sanctions on Chinese firms ‘as early as next week’
The move appears to be triggered in particularly by a recent breach of US federal government personnel files that exposed millions of officials - including some at the very top levels.
Shi Yinhong, a professor of international relations at Renmin University, said that had it not been for Xi's visit, "Obama might have ordered sanctions against China". "[The issue] has now replaced the disputes in the South China Sea to become the No 1 problem of China-US relations. The issue of cyberattacks will have a very odious influence on the China-US relations if things get worse," Shi said.
Shen Shishun, a researcher at the China Institute of International Studies, expected the two sides to agree not "to take any damaging measures in the matter of cybersecurity and reach common ground on other important matters".
READ MORE: China, US can cooperate on cybersecurity, says Chinese top diplomat, amid hacking claims
A year ago, US prosecutors unsealed indictments levelling spying charges against five Chinese military personnel they believe hacked into US networks to profit Chinese firms.
But beyond indictments, Washington has struggled to build an effective deterrent against a wave of increasingly damaging cyber attacks.
Calibrating which attacks warrant diplomatic protests – and which require a more forceful response – has proven fraught.

Any broad move by the world’s biggest economy to punish the second largest could have global political and economic consequences and would likely trigger retribution.
US intelligence has also been accused of mounting cyber attacks to scoop up Chinese data – accusations reportedly supported by documents leaked by fugitive contractor Edward Snowden.
No stay at Chinese-owned hotel
Separately, just weeks before Xi's visit, Obama will reportedly forego his normal digs at New York’s Waldorf Astoria during the UN General Assembly this month. The hotel had been bought by a Chinese insurance firm.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Obama and the US delegation would stay at the nearby New York Palace Hotel.
“There are a range of considerations that influence where the president will stay when he’s not at the White House,” Earnest said. “Those considerations include everything from available space, to cost and to security.”
Earnest would not say whether the Chinese acquisition of the Astoria had raised concerns about possible espionage. Anbang Insurance Group bought the landmark luxury hotel late last year for US$1.95 billion.

For years it has been used as a base for US operations when leaders from around the world descend on Manhattan for the UN General Assembly meeting.
The State Department has long held a suite at the Waldorf for the US ambassador to the United Nations, currently Samantha Power.
State Department spokesman John Kirby refused to be drawn on whether officials are concerned about privacy issues at a Chinese-owned hotel, but confirmed the US delegation to the General Assembly would stay elsewhere.
“Security is always a concern, as you know, but I don’t have anything to announce about Ambassador Power’s residence, for the time being she’s at the Waldorf,” he said.
“We constantly review accommodations, especially for our diplomats, and that will continue in this case. We’re not going to discuss the factors that go into contractual engagements that we make.”
The Waldorf Astoria occupies a full city block in midtown Manhattan, and has been in business for more than a century.
In 1993, the hotel was declared an official New York City landmark, joining the Empire State Building and the Brooklyn Bridge.


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Barack Obama

Obama raises spectre of future cyber war ahead of Xi Jinping's visit, promises that China cannot win

Obama said the cyber attacks from China are 'not acceptable' and may become a core national security threat. Photo: Reuters

US President Barack Obama (left) and Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Photos: Reuters, AFP

Obama shakes hands with service members after attending a military town hall meeting at Fort Meade in Maryland on Friday, the 14th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Photo: TNS

A taxi passes in front of the fabled Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York. Photo: AP

US may impose sanctions on Chinese firms over alleged cyber theft of trade secrets ‘as early as next week’

Allegations that Chinese hackers have targeted US companies have put a strain on ties between the two nations. Photo: Reuters

China, US can cooperate on cybersecurity, says Chinese top diplomat, amid hacking claims

State Councillor Yang Jiechi's comments come after the US has accused Chinese hackers of mounting attacks against it. Photo: AFP

China denies hacking data on four million US government staff

China denies hacking data on four million US government staff. Photo: Reuters

FBI investigates claims of possible Chinese military link to cyber attacks

The FBI is investigating a British newspaper's claims that the Chinese military was involved in a cyber attack on a company managing internet websites. Photo: Reuters

Revealed: The Chinese forums offering hacking courses for just US$100 

Online Chinese hacking forums offer 'black hat' training courses for low prices. Photo: eGuidry/Flickr

FBI wanted posters for the five People's Liberation Army hackers indicted by the US Attorney General. Photos: AP

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