FBI Director Christopher Wray testifies earlier than a House Judiciary Committee listening to on “oversight of the Federal Bureau of Investigation” and alleged politicization of legislation enforcement, on Capitol Hill in Washington, July 12, 2023.
Jonathan Ernst | Reuters
The FBI shut down a serious China-backed hacking group that attacked a whole bunch of routers and had been working to compromise U.S. cyber infrastructure, FBI Director Christopher Wray introduced Wednesday at a House committee listening to.
The hacking group, code-named “Volt Typhoon,” had compromised routers to permit the Chinese authorities to entry their knowledge, Wray informed the committee. The Justice Department and FBI recognized the assaults and shut down facets of the Volt Typhoon malware.
The hackers had been targeting U.S. water therapy crops, the ability grid, oil and pure gasoline pipelines, and transportation techniques, he added.
“Today, and actually day by day, they’re actively attacking our financial safety, participating in wholesale theft of our innovation, and our private and company knowledge,” he mentioned.
Microsoft in May warned that Volt Typhoon hackers had been targeting U.S. cyber infrastructure and urged impacted prospects to vary their safety particulars.
Wray’s feedback add to a slew of warnings about the specter of China to U.S. cybersecurity.
In July, Chinese hackers additionally compromised the email accounts of the U.S. ambassador to China and different officers.
Wray himself has been ringing alarm bells on China for years. In February 2022, he informed NBC News that he was shocked to find out how widespread Chinese spying had develop into when he grew to become FBI director. Later that yr, he joined British officers in London to difficulty one other warning about Chinese nationwide safety threats, together with the nation’s intention to invade the self-governing island of Taiwan.
This is a growing story. Check again for updates.