US Secret Service accuses hackers linked to Chinese government of stealing $20m in Covid aid

CN—

Hackers linked to the Chinese government stole at least $20 million in US government coronavirus relief funds, a US Secret Service spokesperson told CNN on Monday, the first time the agency connected the Covid fraud -19 to hackers affiliated with a foreign government.

The hackers looted unemployment insurance funds and Small Business Administration loan money in more than a dozen US states, Secret Service spokeswoman Justine Whelan said.

It is unclear if the hackers carried out the theft for personal gain or if they were operating on Beijing’s behalf. CNN has requested comment from the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C.

NBC News first reported the news.

The hacking group the Secret Service has blamed for the activity is known to the cybersecurity industry as APT41 and has reportedly for years carried out espionage on behalf of the Chinese government while engaging in self-enrichment programs.

US prosecutors have accused APT41 of working for China’s civilian intelligence agency, the Ministry of State Security; a 2020 Department of Justice indictment alleged that APT41 agents were part of hacking schemes targeting pro-democracy politicians in Hong Kong and breached more than 100 businesses in the United States and abroad .

Of more than 1,000 ongoing investigations involving transnational and domestic criminal actors defrauding public benefit programs, APT41 has emerged as a notable player, said Roy Dotson, the Secret Service’s National Pandemic Fraud Coordinator. , in a press release.

But the $20 million in Covid-19 support is only a fraction of the pandemic relief money stolen from US government coffers by a wide range of criminal groups.

The Secret Service says it has seized more than $1.4 billion in ill-gotten funds since 2020. To get the problem under control, the agency enlisted Dotson to work with law enforcement across the country to recover stolen funds.

In the case of APT41, hackers have been targeting US state governments for some time. The group went on a hacking spree against US state agencies in 2021 and 2022, breaking into the computers of government agencies in at least six US states, cybersecurity firm Mandiant said in March, which is owned by Google.

Chinese hackers who use computer code similar to APT41 have increased their activity this year, targeting sensitive data held by companies and government agencies in the United States and dozens of other countries, an expert previously told CNN. consulting giant PricewaterhouseCoopers.

APT41 is essentially a criminal enterprise that moonlights on behalf of an intelligence service, John Hultquist, vice president of intelligence analysis at Mandiants, told CNN.

If this is criminal activity targeting government agencies in the United States, that’s a bit of an escalation for APT41, Hultquist said, adding that it was unusual for the group to profit from a target. also publicized.

FBI Director Christopher Wray called China’s hacking program more prolific than that of all the other governments in the world combined. Beijing has regularly denied such claims while accusing the US government of targeting China with hacks.

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