Chinese Hackers

[kyonides]

Chinese Hackers Penetrated Dutch Defense Network

Chinese state-backed attackers hacked into a Dutch defense network last year and gained persistent access, the Netherlands has acknowledged.

“It is important to ensure that espionage activities of this nature committed by China become public knowledge since this will help to increase international resilience to this type of cyber espionage,” Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren said on Feb. 6.

The report, jointly published by the Dutch Military Intelligence and Security Service (MIVD) and the General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD), didn’t clarify what information the hackers were trying to obtain.

The report states that damage from the breach was limited because of “network segmentation,” which separated it from the ministry’s wider network.

The affected network “had fewer than 50 users” and was used for unclassified research, they said.
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“MIVD & AIVD assess with high confidence that the malicious activity was conducted by a state-sponsored actor from the People’s Republic of China. This is part of a wider trend of Chinese political espionage against the Netherlands and its allies,” the report reads.

The report acknowledges that Chinese hacking attempts occurred “with a high operational tempo.”

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which rules China as a single-party state, hasn’t yet responded to the incident; it routinely denies any involvement in overseas hacking campaigns.
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Similarly, the malware uncovered by Dutch intelligence—named “COATHANGER”—was used to grant China persistent access to the network after entry, effectively granting the regime the ability to exploit the network as opportunities presented themselves.