China spy agency renews foreign cyber intelligence warning after data breaches

Negligence and a lack of precautions are making critical departments and companies vulnerable to attack, state security ministry said

Overseas spies usually scan for network flaws in large batches before launching targeted attacks to steal data, it added

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China’s Ministry of State Security said cyber spies have been establishing clandestine channels to consistently aquire sensitive data. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 8:00pm, 16 Feb 2024

China’s top intelligence agency has issued a renewed warning about foreign cyber espionage, saying data breaches endanger the country’s information and network security.

The Ministry of State Security said that in recent years overseas cyber spies have been attacking critical departments and companies in China and establishing channels to consistently acquire sensitive data.

Foreign hackers usually manage to pilfer data from key Chinese units because they are able to take advantage of a lack of security precautions and negligence, the ministry warned.

“Cyber spies outside China often scan exposed network security flaws in large batches. Once they discover unpatched vulnerabilities on important units, they launch targeted attacks to steal data,” it said, in an article posted on Friday to its WeChat account.

In one case, a military-civilian integration enterprise did not update its software promptly – which the agency described as “a high cybersecurity risk as if the door was wide open”.

Hackers then implanted malware disguised as a legitimate programme via the loophole to access the company’s production data and customer information, the agency said.

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