The US Justice Department has charged five Chinese nationals with hacking attacks on over 100 companies in the United States and other nations, the US Justice Department announced on Wednesday.
Additionally, two Malaysian businessmen accused of collaborating with Chinese hackers to gain profit from attacks on the video game industry in the US have been arrested in Malaysia.
According to the DoJ, the cyberattacks "facilitated the theft of source code, software code signing certificates, customer account data, and valuable business information".
"We have unsealed three indictments that collectively charge five Chinese nationals with computer hacking and charge two Malaysian nationals for helping some of those hackers target victims and sell the fruits of their hacking," Rosen said. "The Chinese defendants targeted well over one hundred victims worldwide in a variety of industries and sectors that are sadly part of the standard target list for Chinese hackers."
In July, two Chinese hackers allegedly working with the Chinese Ministry of State Security, had been charged with conducting a global computer intrusion campaign targeting intellectual property and COVID-19 research.
Following the announcement of the charges, the US ordered China to close its consulate in Houston, Texas. China qualified this act as a violation of international law.
