Federal agencies have revealed that Chinese hackers have maintained a covert presence within U.S. infrastructure for up to five years, poised to launch potentially destructive cyberattacks in the event of heightened geopolitical tensions. This unsettling revelation came through a public cybersecurity warning issued by six U.S. agencies alongside allied cybersecurity and intelligence bodies from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the U.K. This collective alert marks one of the most significant and direct acknowledgments of the long-term cyber threat posed by Chinese state-sponsored actors to critical U.S. sectors, including communications, energy, and transportation systems.
The nature of these cyber intrusions has made it challenging for infrastructure operators to detect breaches, highlighting the sophisticated tactics employed by these hackers. While the U.S. and other nations engage in cyberespionage as part of their intelligence activities, the focus of this Chinese campaign seems to be on positioning for disruptive or destructive actions rather than traditional espionage.Â
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