China strongly rebukes US, allies' accusations of cyber attacks

China has issued a "strong" rebuke to the United States after Washington and two key allies accused Beijing of being behind a series of hacks into lawmakers and key democratic institutions

"China firmly opposes this, has made strong demarches with the United States and relevant parties," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Tuesday.

In detailed public accusations against China on Monday — the United States, Britain and New Zealand described a series of cyber breaches over the last decade or more in what appeared to be a concerted effort to hold Beijing accountable.

In response, China insisted it "opposes and cracks down on all forms of cyberattacks" and accused the United States of using the FiveEyes spying alliance "to compile and disseminate false information about threats from Chinese hackers".

Beijing, he warned, "will take necessary measures to safeguard China's legitimate rights and interests."

Tens or thousands of targeted emails

Washington's accusation detailed what it called a 14-year "prolific global hacking operation" designed to aid China's "economic espionage and foreign intelligence objectives".

Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco on Monday said the campaign involved more than 10,000 emails being sent, targeting US and foreign-based businesses, politicians, candidates for elected office and journalists.

Washington said a unit, dubbed APT31, was behind the attacks, describing it as a "cyberespionage program" run by China's powerful Ministry of State Security out of the central city of Wuhan.

It charged seven alleged hackers for their roles in gaining access to "email accounts, cloud storage accounts, and telephone call records", the Justice Department said, monitoring some accounts for "years".

Hours later, London said that from 2021-2022 the same APT31 group had targeted UK lawmakers' accounts, including many who were critical of Beijing's policies.

With Britain expected to hold a general election within months, UK Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden also made a shock announcement that "a Chinese state-affiliated entity" had likely "compromised" the country's Electoral Commission.

Two individuals and one company linked to APT31 have been hit with UK sanctions.

And in its own announcement, New Zealand on Tuesday said its Parliamentary Counsel Office, which drafts and publishes laws, had been compromised around the same period.

New Zealand, normally one of China's strongest backers in the West, blamed the Chinese "state-sponsored group" APT40 for the attack.

New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said he had instructed diplomats to "speak today to the Chinese Ambassador, to lay out our position and express our concerns".