China blames US for cyber break-in, claims America is world's biggest bit burglar
(2025/10/20)
- Reference: 1760981259
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2025/10/20/china_accuses_us_cyber_warfare/
- Source link:
China has blamed the US for a "major cyberattack" against its National Time Service Center, alleging it could have disrupted the country's communications, financial, and transportation networks, and even caused power outages.
In a Sunday WeChat [1]post , the Ministry of State Security (MSS) said it uncovered "irrefutable evidence" that the US National Security Agency (NSA) exploited a security flaw in a foreign mobile phone brand's messaging service to hijack phones and steal sensitive data belonging to China's National Time Service Center employees beginning in late March 2022, according to a Google translation of the Chinese-language statement.
China's intelligence service also alleged that, in April 2023, the NSA used stolen credentials to break into the Time Service Center's computers and snoop around on its networks. It accused the American spy agency of deploying a "cyber warfare platform" and activating "42 specialized cyberattack weapons to launch a high-intensity cyberattack against multiple internal NTSC network systems" between August 2023 and June 2024.
[2]
"The NSA also attempted to penetrate the high-precision ground-based timing system, potentially disabling it," according to the MSS, which added that Beijing's national security authorities ultimately thwarted the attack.
[3]
[4]
China's Time Service Center, located in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, provides high-precision timing services to the nation's government and critical infrastructure sectors.
The cyberattack accusations come amid trade tensions between Washington and Beijing, and follow multiple reports of Chinese government spies breaking into US networks including those belonging to the [5]US Air Force , [6]American oil and gas companies , and [7]"numerous" enterprise networks .
[8]'Highly sophisticated' government goons hacked F5, stole source code and undisclosed bug details
[9]OpenAI bans suspected Chinese accounts using ChatGPT to plan surveillance
[10]Air Force admits SharePoint privacy issue as reports trickle out of possible breach
[11]Hunt for RedNovember: Beijing hacked critical orgs in year-long snooping campaign
Last week, security firm F5 said [12]"highly sophisticated nation-state" hackers - reportedly [13]Beijing-backed snoops - broke into its network and stole BIG-IP source code, undisclosed vulnerability details, and some customer configuration data.
In its Sunday post, the MSS accused US spy agencies of "continuously carrying out cyberattacks targeting China, Southeast Asia, Europe, and South America," while "coercing other countries to hype up so-called 'Chinese hacker attacks.'"
[14]
"Ironclad facts have proven that the US is the true 'Matrix' and the greatest source of chaos in cyberspace," Beijing added, but did not provide any proof to back up its latest allegations.
The NSA did not immediately respond to The Register 's request for comment. ®
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[1] https://mp-weixin-qq-com.translate.goog/s/ZtKjlaIoMVCSY-rXt2RP1Q?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en-US&_x_tr_pto=wapp
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_specialfeatures/cybersecuritymonth&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2aPaw-A2mWQCjByKcF8cYRAAAAM0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
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[5] https://www.theregister.com/2025/10/01/us_air_force_investigates_breach/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2025/09/27/rednovember_chinese_espionage/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2025/09/24/google_china_spy_report/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2025/10/15/highly_sophisticated_government_hackers_breached/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2025/10/07/openai_bans_suspected_china_accounts/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2025/10/01/us_air_force_investigates_breach/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2025/09/27/rednovember_chinese_espionage/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2025/10/15/highly_sophisticated_government_hackers_breached/
[13] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-10-16/potentially-catastrophic-breach-of-cyber-firm-blamed-on-china
[14] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_specialfeatures/cybersecuritymonth&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aPaw-A2mWQCjByKcF8cYRAAAAM0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[15] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
In a Sunday WeChat [1]post , the Ministry of State Security (MSS) said it uncovered "irrefutable evidence" that the US National Security Agency (NSA) exploited a security flaw in a foreign mobile phone brand's messaging service to hijack phones and steal sensitive data belonging to China's National Time Service Center employees beginning in late March 2022, according to a Google translation of the Chinese-language statement.
China's intelligence service also alleged that, in April 2023, the NSA used stolen credentials to break into the Time Service Center's computers and snoop around on its networks. It accused the American spy agency of deploying a "cyber warfare platform" and activating "42 specialized cyberattack weapons to launch a high-intensity cyberattack against multiple internal NTSC network systems" between August 2023 and June 2024.
[2]
"The NSA also attempted to penetrate the high-precision ground-based timing system, potentially disabling it," according to the MSS, which added that Beijing's national security authorities ultimately thwarted the attack.
[3]
[4]
China's Time Service Center, located in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, provides high-precision timing services to the nation's government and critical infrastructure sectors.
The cyberattack accusations come amid trade tensions between Washington and Beijing, and follow multiple reports of Chinese government spies breaking into US networks including those belonging to the [5]US Air Force , [6]American oil and gas companies , and [7]"numerous" enterprise networks .
[8]'Highly sophisticated' government goons hacked F5, stole source code and undisclosed bug details
[9]OpenAI bans suspected Chinese accounts using ChatGPT to plan surveillance
[10]Air Force admits SharePoint privacy issue as reports trickle out of possible breach
[11]Hunt for RedNovember: Beijing hacked critical orgs in year-long snooping campaign
Last week, security firm F5 said [12]"highly sophisticated nation-state" hackers - reportedly [13]Beijing-backed snoops - broke into its network and stole BIG-IP source code, undisclosed vulnerability details, and some customer configuration data.
In its Sunday post, the MSS accused US spy agencies of "continuously carrying out cyberattacks targeting China, Southeast Asia, Europe, and South America," while "coercing other countries to hype up so-called 'Chinese hacker attacks.'"
[14]
"Ironclad facts have proven that the US is the true 'Matrix' and the greatest source of chaos in cyberspace," Beijing added, but did not provide any proof to back up its latest allegations.
The NSA did not immediately respond to The Register 's request for comment. ®
Get our [15]Tech Resources
[1] https://mp-weixin-qq-com.translate.goog/s/ZtKjlaIoMVCSY-rXt2RP1Q?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en-US&_x_tr_pto=wapp
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_specialfeatures/cybersecuritymonth&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2aPaw-A2mWQCjByKcF8cYRAAAAM0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_specialfeatures/cybersecuritymonth&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aPaw-A2mWQCjByKcF8cYRAAAAM0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_specialfeatures/cybersecuritymonth&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aPaw-A2mWQCjByKcF8cYRAAAAM0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2025/10/01/us_air_force_investigates_breach/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2025/09/27/rednovember_chinese_espionage/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2025/09/24/google_china_spy_report/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2025/10/15/highly_sophisticated_government_hackers_breached/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2025/10/07/openai_bans_suspected_china_accounts/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2025/10/01/us_air_force_investigates_breach/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2025/09/27/rednovember_chinese_espionage/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2025/10/15/highly_sophisticated_government_hackers_breached/
[13] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-10-16/potentially-catastrophic-breach-of-cyber-firm-blamed-on-china
[14] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_specialfeatures/cybersecuritymonth&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aPaw-A2mWQCjByKcF8cYRAAAAM0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[15] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Pot - Kettle
ecofeco
This.
Almost every nation on earth is playing this game.
But I see at least 6 down-votes from some sweet summer children.
JimboSmith
Who watches the Watchmen - Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
RIP Sir Pterry..
Blame
elsergiovolador
X blames Y.
What am I supposed to do with that information?
Nonsense.
ChoHag
I don't know if it's the biggest or not. Big certainly. I'd care a lot more about China's plight if they weren't holding up their hands in feigned innocence.
I'd give them a lot more respect if their message was "we try to fuck over America and America tries to fuck us over and they're so bad at it we caught them in
Trying to pretend you're innocent doesn't garner any sympathy. We know you all spy on each other. Own it and stop lying like children trying to pin the blame for stealing the cookies on their baby brother with your face and hands covered in chocolate. You're still chewing for god's sake.
Anonymous Coward
Does the NSA have to pay a tariff for exporting data from China? Could add up pretty quickly.
Brl4n
if China wasn't up to its usual shenanigans you could work that angle. maybe it's funny in an alternate universe?
The NSA?
Throatwarbler Mangrove
I'm pretty sure they don't exist.
Pot - Kettle
It’s impossible to have any sympathy for anyone here. It’s a daily occurrence for sone Chinese hacking attempt/success to be uncovered and reported. And I have no doubt at all (although it doesn’t get the same press coverage of course) the Americans and its friends (I use the term loosely as claiming to be friends with America at the moment is like saying you’re friends with nazi Germany - but I digress) do exactly the same to the Chinese.
As a species and civilisation, we deserve to be fucked.