US officials have found suspected Chinese malware across several military systems — and unlike previous attacks, experts say the intent is likely to disrupt rather than to surveil, The New York Times reports.
The attacks first came into the public eye in May after Microsoft identified the malicious code in telecommunications software in Guam, where the US houses the Andersen Air Force Base.
US officials told the Times that investigations into Chinese malware had been underway for several months prior and that the malicious code has infiltrated US military systems across the country and abroad. Previous cyberattacks typically aimed to surveil US operations, experts told the Times.
“China is steadfast and determined to penetrate our governments, our companies, our critical infrastructure,” Deputy Director of the National Security Agency George Barnes said at the Intelligence and National Security Summit earlier this month. Now, experts say this new wave of malicious code has the ability to disrupt US military and civilian operations.
Last month, Rob Joyce, the director of cybersecurity at the National Security Agency, called the nature of this malware “really disturbing.” According to the Times, it could allow China to cut off power, water, and communications to military bases, and it could also potentially impact personal homes and businesses across the country.
Additionally, according to experts who spoke to the Times, it is not clear whether or not the Chinese government knows about the malware, or how well the software could actually work. “We have consistently made clear that any action that targets the US government, US companies, American citizens, is a deep concern to us and that we will take appropriate action to hold those responsible accountable and the secretary made that clear again,” said a senior State Department official of Blinken’s meeting. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken apparently raised the issue of Chinese hacking while meeting with Chinese diplomats earlier in July, according to reporting from CNN.
