Report Says Chinese Cyber Attacks ‘Ongoing’

Chinese cyber attacks against American firms are “ongoing” and the use of covert cyber tools and methods by Beijing hackers led to a statistical decline in cyber activities, according to an internal State Department security report.

The report by the State Department-led Overseas Security Advisory Council, or OSAC, a public-private partnership, challenges the findings of a recent study by the private cyber security firm FireEye that says the decline in the number of Chinese-origin cyber attacks indicated China has cut back from large-scale cyber attacks.

“While media reporting has emphasized this alleged decrease in malicious activity, cases of Chinese espionage campaigns against the U.S. private sector are ongoing,” the report said, adding that “OSAC constituents should remain aware that China is still considered a highly capable and motivated cyber threat actor.”

The three-page report highlighting ongoing Chinese cyber threats is a setback for White House efforts to portray President Obama’s September 2015 deal with China to curb cyber economic espionage as a diplomatic breakthrough.

Since the deal, various private security firms offered differing assessments of whether China is curtailing large-scale cyber attacks, the report said.

The report notes that Chinese cyber attacks in 2015 were particularly damaging. “At a higher level, paramount attacks against various U.S. organizations continued in 2015 and Chinese hackers exceeded other nation-state actors for consistency, volume, and severity of cyber attacks during the past year,” the report, dated June 27, says.

“This included intrusions into healthcare systems Anthem and Premera, and the Office of Personnel Management, collectively compromising the sensitive data of over 100 million U.S. citizens.”

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