Cybersecurity Policy Report, Another 10 Chinese ‘Contract Hackers’ Face U.S. Charges, (Mar 6, 2025)
Organizations Mentioned:U.S. Department of the Treasury
Ten “contract hackers” who targeted perceived foes of the Chinese government in the U.S. and abroad have been charged with computer crimes in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (SDNY), the Department of Justice has announced.
An indictment unsealed by the court charges two Chinese intelligence officers and eight employees at Shanghai-based Anxun Information Technology Co. Ltd. (i-Soon) with conspiracy to commit computer intrusions and wire fraud, DoJ said in a news release yesterday.
The defendants are part of a cyber threat group known as Silk Typhoon. DoJ previously announced charges against two additional Silk Typhoon defendants in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (CPR, March 5).
The SDNY defendants acted “as freelancers or as employees of i-Soon” to conduct cyber attacks on organizations and individuals perceived as antagonistic to the People’s Republic of China (PRC), DoJ said.
“Victims include U.S.-based critics and dissidents of the PRC, a large religious organization in the United States, the foreign ministries of multiple governments in Asia, and U.S. federal and state government agencies, including the U.S. Department of the Treasury,” it said.
The defendants remain at large, but the State Department is offering rewards of up to $10 million for information leading to their arrest.
“The Department of Justice will relentlessly pursue those who threaten our cybersecurity by stealing from our government and our people,” said Sue Bai, head of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.
“Today, we are exposing the Chinese government agents directing and fostering indiscriminate and reckless attacks against computers and networks worldwide, as well as the enabling companies and individual hackers that they have unleashed,” Ms. Bai added. “We will continue to fight to dismantle this ecosystem of cyber mercenaries and protect our national security.”
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said the charges were baseless. “We reject the groundless U.S. accusations and urge the U.S. to immediately stop its wrongdoing of abusing sanctions,” Lin Jian told reporters at a news conference, according to a transcript.
“Last December, Chinese cybersecurity agency disclosed two recent cyberattacks against Chinese high-tech companies launched by the U.S. intelligence community,” Mr. Lin said. “The U.S. is the No. 1 ‘hacking empire’ in the world. We call on the U.S. to ditch its double standards and stop framing China.”
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