2 Alleged Chinese Hackers Charged With IP-Related Cybercrimes

Two state-linked Chinese hackers were charged with cybercrimes targeting intellectual property and confidential business information in at least a dozen countries, DOJ announced Thursday. For more than a decade, Zhu Hua and Zhang Shilong, who remain at large, committed cyber intrusion with the Chinese Ministry of State Security’s Tianjin State Security Bureau, Justice alleged. “The defendants were part of a group that hacked computers in at least a dozen countries and gave China’s intelligence service access to sensitive business information,” Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein alleged, saying he hopes the defendants one day “face justice under the rule of law in a federal courtroom.” Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., lauded the announcement: “A truly effective response will require a coordinated approach with our allies and a comprehensive strategy to protect our national security and enhance U.S. competitiveness and resiliency.” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen voiced concerns the activity violates 2015 U.S.-China cyber commitments by Chinese President Xi Jinping to “refrain from conducting or knowingly supporting” cybertheft.