In early December, a Chinese state-sponsored hacker breached the US Treasury Department’s systems, accessing employee workstations and unclassified documents. The breach, was labeled as a “major incident,” was discovered through the compromise of BeyondTrust, a third-party service provider. Both the FBI and other agencies are investigating, but no evidence suggests ongoing access. The hackers may have created accounts or changed passwords during their three-day access, though they sought information, not funds.
Chinese Embassy spokesman Liu Pengyu denied the accusations, calling them out for trying to frame the Chinese and urging for evidence-based conclusions. This breach follows another high-profile incident involving telecom companies, further escalating concerns about Chinese cyber hacking. The Treasury Department promised a supplemental report to lawmakers within 30 days, underlining their commitment to cybersecurity.