Chinese Hackers Breach “Western Governments” in an Effort to Spy on them

Microsoft has announced that Chinese hackers have recently compromised email accounts of approximately 25 organizations, according to multiple government agencies including the U.S. government.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency announced that an unnamed “Federal Civilian Executive Branch (FCEB) agency” first discovered the breach in mid-June.

Although Microsoft did not name any of the countries or agencies that were affected by the breaches, they did say that those affected were western governments that were being spied on.

Senator Mark Warner, D-Va., the head of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said that they are “closely monitoring what appears to be a significant cybersecurity breach by Chinese intelligence.”

“It’s clear that the PRC is steadily improving its cyber collection capabilities directed against the U.S. and our allies,” Warner added. “Close coordination between the U.S. government and the private sector will be critical to countering this threat.”

Microsoft stated that the hacks went undetected for just over a month, and email accounts were the primary target. The tech giant also stated that the hackers no longer have access to the accounts.

Hackers working for China are different from those in areas like Russia, because rather than trying to disrupt their victims, China is more interested in spying on them.

In response to speculation that China’s government was involved, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry said any accusation was “disinformation.”

Story via NBCNews.com