Intimidation Games

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The United States and the United Kingdom on Monday imposed sanctions on Chinese state-backed hacking units for allegedly intruding into American energy and defense systems and stealing British voting registration data, signaling an escalation of cyber conflict between Beijing and the West, the New York Times reported.

US intelligence found malware in the country’s electrical grids, defense systems and other critical infrastructure. They believe the intention was to distract Americans from supporting Taiwan with attention instead turned toward electricity, food, and water supplies.

In a separate case, the Justice Department indicted seven Chinese individuals, part of a group known as Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) 31. The group has targeted officials and politicians in a 14-year intimidation campaign, sending over 10,000 emails with hidden tracking links.

In a joint move with Washington, London also sanctioned the group, accusing it of stealing the registration data of around 40 million British voters. The motive behind this intrusion remains unclear, as it appears the hackers did not try to manipulate the data, which is publicly available. Observers suggested this may have been a testing round.

Britain also accused APT31 of unsuccessfully attempting to hack the email accounts of lawmakers known for having criticized China.

This marked a shift in the UK’s stance on China. So far, it had refrained from making hawkish comments on Beijing as it sought to enhance trade relations following its exit from the European Union’s single market.

The US, too, was reluctant to call out Chinese hacking efforts, despite a previous incident under Barack Obama’s presidency that had led to the loss of 22 million critical security-clearance files.

Now, both countries are coordinating with other allies to protest the intimidation campaigns. On Monday, New Zealand said another Beijing-sponsored group, APT40, had hacked its Parliament, Al Jazeera reported.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry accused Britain of spreading “fake news” and lacking “objective evidence.”