US hacked aeronautics and space research university, says China
China has accused the US's National Security Agency of hacking a state-funded university with programs in the field of aeronautics and space research. The attack on Northwestern Polytechnical University occurred this June. After the incident, the university's information systems were analyzed and the involvement of the US agency was discovered. NSA has reportedly conducted over 10,000 cyber attacks on Chinese targets in recent years.
Why does this story matter?
China's recent accusations signal a shift in diplomatic ties with the US. The situation has perhaps aggravated by the tensions over Taiwan. Meanwhile, the US and its allies have reportedly started investing more funds for conducting surveillance and espionage on Beijing. The situation is only expected to get worse as there are no talks of solving the exiting blockades.
Over 140GB of 'valuable' data was stolen
The Northwestern Polytechnical University in Xi'an is a government-owned institution. It offers research programs in marine technology engineering, aeronautics, and astronautics. In June, a cyber attack was allegedly conducted from overseas and the university's information systems were analyzed by China's National Computer Virus Emergency Response Center's team and 360 Security Technology. The team claimed that over 140GB of data with "great value" was stolen.
Hacking via malware was conducted in February
China has started accusing the US of conducting a spate of cyber attacks. This February, Chinese cyber security firm Pangu Lab claimed to have discovered US-sponsored hacking activity in its country. Pangu Lab said that the hacking was done via malware in IT systems, allegedly created by hacking group Equation. China claims that Equation has ties to the NSA.
What is the Chinese strategy right now?
Earlier, Beijing tried to portray itself as a victim of cyber attacks and called the US an "empire of hackers." Now, it has resorted to naming and shaming targets in a bid to drum up global anti-US sentiment and raise public awareness about the alleged attacks. It remains to be seen how China will react to this as tensions continue to grow.
