Chinese police accuse NSA trio of cyberattacks during games
The Chinese police in Harbin issued wanted notices for three NSA employees, accusing them of cyberattacks on critical infrastructure during the Asian Winter Games.
The Chinese police in Harbin accused three employees of the American National Security Agency (NSA) of conducting advanced cyberattacks on critical infrastructure. According to the Xinhua news agency, the attacks that the Americans were accused of allegedly occurred in February during the Asian Winter Games held in Harbin.
Information provided by the municipal public security office and cited by the Polish Press Agency suggests that the NSA allegedly conducted cyberattacks on key sectors such as energy, transportation, water management, communications, and defense research institutes in Heilongjiang province. The wanted list includes Katheryn A. Wilson, Robert J. Snelling, and Stephen W. Johnson from the Tailored Access Operations Office (TAO) under the NSA.
They are accused of repeatedly conducting cyberattacks on Chinese information infrastructure and participating in attacks on Huawei and other Chinese enterprises. The aim of these actions was reportedly to cause social unrest and steal confidential information, including athletes' personal data.
Connections with American universities
Investigators also linked the University of California and Virginia Tech to the campaign targeting the Asian Winter Games. According to the "Global Times," the Chinese National Computer Virus Emergency Response Center reported over 270,000 cyberattacks related to this event, two-thirds of which were said to originate from the USA.
The accusations arise in the context of escalating trade tensions between China and the USA. Both countries regularly accuse each other of conducting attacks on critical infrastructure. The US Embassy in Beijing has not commented on these allegations.
