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Four Chinese Nationals Charged with Global Hacking
A federal grand jury in San Diego, California returned an indictment in May 2018 charging four nationals and residents of the People’s Republic of China with a campaign to hack into the computer systems of dozens of victim companies, universities and government entities in the United States and abroad between 2011 and 2018.
The indictment alleges that much of the conspiracy’s theft was focused on information that was of significant economic benefit to China’s companies and commercial sectors, including information that would allow the circumvention of lengthy and resource-intensive research and development processes.
The two-count indictment alleges that Ding Xiaoyang, Cheng Qingmin, Zhu Yunmin, and Wu Shurong were Hainan State Security Department (HSSD) officers responsible for coordinating, facilitating and managing computer hackers and linguists at Hainan Xiandun and other MSS front companies to conduct hacking for the benefit of China and its state-owned and sponsored instrumentalities.
The conspiracy’s hacking campaign targeted victims in the United States, Austria, Cambodia, Canada, Germany, Indonesia, Malaysia, Norway, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Targeted industries included, among others, aviation, defense, education, government, health care, biopharmaceutical, and maritime.
The exact criminal charges against Ding Xiaoyang are conspiracy to commit computer intrusions and computer intrusions. The status of this case is currently unclear as the provided information does not include a sentence or outcome.
The indictment alleges that the defendants and their HSSD conspirators sought to obfuscate the Chinese government’s role in such theft by establishing a front company, Hainan Xiandun Technology Development Co., Ltd. (海南仙盾) (Hainan Xiandun), since disbanded, to operate out of Haikou, Hainan Province.
Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: Cybercrime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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