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China accuses NSA of FoxAcid hack attack on science research groups

  • Chinese cyber watchdog says software found on hundreds of information systems used by academic institutes
  • US agency could be preparing cyberwarfare on a bigger scale, it says

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Chinese authorities say an NSA hacking tool called FoxAcid has been detected on systems used by Chinese science institutes. Photo: Shutterstock

China’s research institutes have come under a cyberattack launched by the US government, according to China’s cybersecurity authorities.

The National Computer Virus Emergency Response Centre in Beijing said on Wednesday that FoxAcid, a hacking program linked to the US National Security Agency (NSA), was found in hundreds of key information systems used by scientific research institutes.

The centre said the attack could signal NSA preparations for larger-scale cyberwarfare.

“We encourage all users from all over the world to be aware of the risk and the fact that Chinese research institutions were not the only victims,” the centre said.

“Government, academic, and business bodies around the world might all become targets of the NSA.

“When running a new ‘colour revolution’ operation, such a weapon enables US intelligence agencies to steal sensitive data at any time, and cause outages of critical infrastructure in wartime.”

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