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. The Taiwanese government has raised concerns that its websites frequently fall prey to mainland hackers. China, US anti-hacking group holds first talks since September pact Taiwan’s Ministry of Transportation and Communication said in a report to a legislative committee last month that the scale of cyberattacks on the island was “near warfare”. It added the most active hackers were from the mainland and had infiltrated the island’s systems including defence, air traffic, and communication. The defence ministry said it would establish a “cyber army”, one of the policies put forth by Tsai during her campaign.