(VitalNews.org) – The Director of the FBI has announced that the Chinese government has access to United States infrastructure and that they are “waiting for just the right moment to deal a devastating blow.” The Chinese Hacking Campaign Volt Typhoon has been able to gain access to multiple American companies, including telecommunications, water, and other critical areas.
Christopher Wray, the Director of the FBI, said “China is developing the ability to physically wreak havoc on our critical infrastructure at a time of its choosing.” He continued, “Its plan is to land low blows against civilian infrastructure to try to induce panic.”
He said that they don’t exactly know the intent here but that it could be a part of a broader way to push the United States from defending Taiwan. There has been a lot of tension between Taiwan and China as China has deemed it as their territory, but Taiwan objects to their sovereignty claims.
A Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson said that the Volt Typhoon was not related to China’s government but that it was part of a criminal ransomware group instead.
China’s embassy in Washington said, “Some in the US have been using origin-tracing of cyber-attacks as a tool to hit and frame China, claiming the US to be the victim while it’s the other way round, and politicizing cybersecurity issues.”
Wray gave more information saying that the Chinese hackers used botnets, which are compromised personal computers and servers to hide their criminal activity. There have been multiple reports of Volt Typhoon getting into different areas and multiple companies and officials have linked the hacker group to China.
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