Taiwan on Wednesday accused China of hacking some of its government agencies. The country said that a hacking group linked to the Chinese government attacked not less than 10 government agencies and some 6000 email accounts of government officials in a move to steal important data.
Taiwan had sent warnings to its people to be wary of what it calls “omnipresent infiltration” from China, involving from Beijing-backed media campaigns to cyberattacks, against the island that China considers its territory.
The Deputy Director of Taiwan Investigation Bureau’s Cyber Security Investigation Officer, Liu Chia-zung said, “Chinese hacking groups have been infiltrating government agencies and their information service providers for a long time.
“They were aiming to acquire important government documents and data,” Liu told reporters. “Some government data might have been leaked. This has posed a great threat.”
The attacks which date back to 2018, targeted at least 10 government agencies and the email accounts of some 6,000 officials, Liu’s office said, adding it had not been able to identify what data has been stolen as the hackers had concealed their tracks.
Among those who were attacked and infiltrated by two Chinese hacking groups were at least four Taiwan tech companies that had been providing information services to the government, the office said.
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office did not respond to a request for comment. The Chinese government as usual has denied any involvement in hacking and says it punishes those who do it.
Liu said Taiwan believed the two hacking groups involved, Blacktech and Taidoor, were backed by the Chinese Communist Party. They targeted loopholes in the systems provided by the Taiwan government’s information service providers, he said.
Liu said that government agencies should increase scrutiny of their providers.
He also said that his office was investigating service supply chains to see if any Taiwan companies or individuals have worked with the Chinese hackers.
