China Admits Conducting Cyberattacks Against US

A top Chinese leader admitted to a Biden administration delegation in a December meeting that it was behind cyberattacks against the United States.

The Wall Street Journal reported on the admission, which left members of the U.S. delegation at the secret meeting in Geneva "startled" after hearing repeated denials of involvement from the Chinese.

The Journal report is based on unnamed sources familiar with the meeting. They indicated the Chinese were apparently warning the U.S. away from continued support of Taiwan.

Dakota Cary, a China specialist at the cybersecurity firm SentinelOne, told the Journal, "A Chinese official would likely only acknowledge the intrusions even in a private setting if instructed to do so by the top levels of Xi's [President Xi Jinping's] government."

Chinese involvement in cyber intrusions is something the U.S. government has been monitoring for years. The Biden administration Justice Department in March 2024 charged seven Chinese nationals with involvement in a cyber scheme targeting Chinese critics in America, including politicians.

Last month, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned a Chinese computer expert for hacking critical U.S. infrastructure networks. The department posted, "Malicious cyber actors, particularly those operating in China, continue to be one of the greatest and most persistent threats to U.S. national security."

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