Chinese hacker attack on US Treasury targets sanctions office - WP
Photo: Chinese hackers target the US Treasury Department (Getty Images)
Chinese government hackers have hacked into the highly secretive Treasury Department office that imposes economic sanctions on countries and groups. This is one of the most powerful tools at the disposal of the United States to achieve national security goals, The Washington Post reports.
Citing unnamed US officials, the Washington Post reported that hackers had breached the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the Financial Research Administration, and attacked the office of US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.
According to the agency, the attack reflects Beijing's determination to obtain intelligence on its most significant rival in the global struggle for power and influence.
Officials said that the main area of interest of the Chinese government is Chinese organizations against which the US government may consider imposing financial sanctions.
Earlier this week, the Treasury Department reported in a letter to Congress that hackers had stolen unclassified documents in a major incident. It did not specify which users or departments were affected.
A letter from the US Treasury Department stated that the hackers had breached a third-party cybersecurity provider, BeyondTrust.
Chinese firms, individuals, and organizations are often targeted by US sanctions, which Washington uses as a key tool in its foreign policy toward Beijing.
The United States considers China to be its biggest foreign policy challenge, and last month Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that Washington is not ruling out sanctions against Chinese banks as it seeks to cut Russia's oil revenues and limit access to foreign supplies to fuel its war against Ukraine.
Meanwhile, relations between the United States and China remain tense as President-elect Donald Trump prepares to return to the White House, threatening Beijing with even harsher tariffs than those he imposed in his first term. During his campaign last year, he proposed to impose tariffs of 60% or more on all imports from China, which could trigger a global trade war.
