China says US addresses used their computers to launch cyberattacks on Russia and Ukraine

A computer icon appears on a screen above the Chinese flag in this illustration on July 12, 2017. Photo: Thomas White/Reuters

SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China has been hit by continuous cyber attacks since February, as it used US internet addresses to take over Chinese computers to target Belarus, Russia and Ukraine, Xinhua news agency said on Friday.

She cited the National Computer Network Emergency Response Technical Team/Coordination Center of China (CNCERT/CC), a cybersecurity technical center leading efforts to prevent and detect cybersecurity threats to the country.

“The monitoring conducted by CNCERT/CC found that since late February, the Chinese Internet has constantly faced cyber attacks from abroad. These foreign groups attacked by taking control of the country’s computers to carry out cyber attacks on Russia, Ukraine and Belarus,” the Center is quoted as saying.

“After analysis, most of the addresses for these attacks came from the United States,” she added, adding that a few came from other countries such as Germany and the Netherlands.

Cyber ​​attacks have been a major point of tension between the United States and its allies and China, with the former accusing China of carrying out a global cyber espionage campaign.

China says it does not engage in cyber-attacks, describing such allegations as “kid’s defamation”.

(Reporting by Brenda Goh) Editing by Christopher Cushing and Kenneth Maxwell

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