The Federal Bureau of Investigation has disrupted a supposed Chinese state-sponsored hacking that targeted several US service infrastructures.
FBI Director Christopher Wray, during a House committee meeting on Wednesday, reported that the Bureau stopped the cybercriminal group "Volt Typhoon" from collecting data for the Chinese government.
Wray claimed that the hackers have been targeting hundreds of office routers as part of China's campaign to "actively attack our economic security."
Microsoft first tagged the group, known then as "Flax Typhoon," last year as a "state-sponsored actor based in China" that has been targeting "critical infrastructure organizations" for espionage and information gathering.
The group has reportedly been operating since mid-2021 and has disrupted services between the US and Asia across communications, utility, transportation, and maritime sectors.
Also Read: China Cyberattacks Target US Power, Water Services
US Gov't Intensifies Hacking Accusations to China
The US government has been pointing the blame at China over reported hacking incidents in the past months as the tension between the two countries intensified.
Fears of more sophisticated attacks from China became more prevalent after officials reported that the Eastern nation is stealing AI secrets to "turbocharge" its spying on the West.
This is after another supposed Chinese-sponsored hacker stole over 6,000 email information from State Department officials.
Wray was among the fervent callers against China's supposed actions for years now, going as far as to claim that TikTok provides the Chinese government avenue to disrupt US elections.
Chinese officials discarded Wray's and other lawmakers' accusations as "ideological bias and zero-sum Cold War mentality."
Related Article: China Spy Agency Employs AI System to Monitor US Officials - Reports
Beijing Charges US Officials of Breaching Chinese Government Data
Following accusations from the FBI, Chinese officials also claimed that the US has been regularly targeting its systems to collect critical information on the country.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that the US government has conducted cyberattacks against China "almost daily."
China has yet to provide evidence to its claims.
