Cyberattack on Taiwan’s ruling party pinned on hackers from Chinese mainland
Visitors to portal of Democratic Progressive Party were directed to fake website in April, US-based security firm says
Hackers on the Chinese mainland were likely to be behind an attack on the website of Taiwan’s ruling party, a US-based security firm said on Thursday, as the island warns of growing cyber threats.
Cross-strait relations have turned increasingly frosty since Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen of the mainland-sceptic Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) won elections in January and took office last month, with Beijing wary that the new government may seek independence.
The island has been self-ruling since the two sides split in 1949 after a civil war – but Beijing still sees it as part of its territory.
Taiwan opposition leader Tsai Ing-wen’s Facebook page flooded with posts from the mainland
The party’s website came under attack in early April, redirecting visitors to a fake website, California-based FireEye said in a statement.
The tactic was one often used by mainland hackers, it said. Administrators fixed the problem the next day but the website was compromised again a few days later, suggesting the site is being monitored, according to the statement.
“FireEye believes this operation likely reflects continued efforts by China-based cyber-espionage operators to collect intelligence related to the DPP as it moves Taiwan away from [mainland-friendly] policies,” it said.