Chinese government hackers compromised the computers of a U.S. Navy contractor and stole a large amount of highly sensitive data on undersea warfare, the Washington Post reported on Friday, citing unnamed U.S. officials.
The hackers, according to the Post, also stole plans for a supersonic anti-ship missile for use on U.S. submarines with the breaches taking place in January and February.
The officials spoke to the publication on condition of anonymity because the investigation into the breach is ongoing and is being led by the Navy and assisted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Chinese government hackers recently stole a large amount of data from naval contractors, including designs for the U.S. Navy’s Supersonic Anti-Ship Missile Defense System (pictured)
The hackers targeted a contractor who works for the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (pictured), a military entity based in Newport, Rhode Island
The FBI did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
‘Per federal regulations, there are measures in place that require companies to notify the government when a “cyber incident” has occurred that has actual or potential adverse effects on their networks that contain controlled unclassified information,’ the U.S. Navy said in response to a query from Reuters.
‘It would be inappropriate to discuss further details at this time,’ they added.
The hackers targeted a contractor who works for the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, a military entity based in Newport, Rhode Island, the unnamed officials said without identifying the contractor, according to the Post.
The hacked material comprised 614 gigabytes relating to a project known as Sea Dragon, as well as signals and sensor data, submarine radio room information relating to cryptographic systems and the Navy submarine development unit´s electronic warfare library, the Post reported, citing the officials.
Chinese hackers stole a large amount of information from a Navy contractor including undersea warfare plans and ‘supersonic anti-ship missile’ (Pictured: he U.S. Navy destroyer John S. McCain Aug. 21, 2017)
The hacking operation comes as the Trump administration seeks China’s assistance in securing a denuclearization agreement with North Korea (Pictured left is North Korea’s Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un and President Donald Trump to the right)
The newspaper said it had agreed to withhold some details about the compromised missile project after the Navy said their release could harm national security.
The data stolen was of a highly sensitive nature despite being housed on the contractor´s unclassified network, the Post said, citing the officials.
The breach is part of Beijing’s long-time effort to steal technological secrets from the United States as it seeks to blunt Washington’s influence in the east Pacific and dominate the region.
The hacking operation comes as the Trump administration seeks China’s assistance in securing a agreement with North Korea that will see the Hermit Kingdom dismantle its nuclear program.
Adm. Philip S. Davidson (pictured) told congress in February that China continue to target US technological secrets as part of an ongoing scheme to steal intellectual property
Former Sen. Jim Talent (R-Mo.), who is a member of the U.S. China Economic and Security Review Commission, called the incident ‘very disturbing,’ adding however that reports of the Chinese hacking scheme was nothing new.
‘They are completely focused on getting advanced weapons technology through all kinds of means. That includes stealing secrets from our defense contractors,’ said Talent.
According the the Post, the Sea Dragon project is part of the Defense Department’s efforts to adapt existing technologies to new applications. The initiative, which is shrouded in secrecy, was first launched in 2012.
The little information the Pentagon has released about Sea Dragon says the program has the capacity to introduce ‘disruptive offensive capability’ by ‘integrating an existing weapon system with an existing Navy platform.’
The Chinese government has made long-term investments in bolstering its military capabilities over the years, acquiring quieter submarines equipped with sophisticated weaponry.
Naval experts fear that the build-up is designed to undermine the US’s ability to defend its allies in the region and suggests that most of the advancements made have come from cyber attacks mostly aimed at private contractors.
One of the main concerns that we have is cyber and penetration of the dot-com networks, exploiting technology from our defense contractors, in some instances,’ Adm. Philip S. Davidson said during his April nomination hearing to lead U.S. Indo-Pacific Command.
The last known breach of military secrets conducted by the Chinese government occurred in February, when Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats testified before congress that cyber attacks were detected targeting defense contractors or tech firms supporting government networks, according to the Post.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin (L) and China’s President Xi Jinping talk as they attend an ice hockey match between junior teams at Tianjin Arena (June 8, 2018)