US critical infrastructure bombarded with Chinese cyberattacks

Nearly two dozen critical infrastructure organizations across the U.S., including an oil and gas pipeline and a Hawaii-based water utility, had their computer systems infiltrated by Chinese state-sponsored threat operations during the past 12 months, reports The Washington Post. While no industrial control system compromise or disruptions have been reported, such incidents suggest that China is looking to hinder U.S. efforts to assist Taiwan in the event of a conflict, according to U.S. officials. Such a development comes after the discovery of the Volt Typhoon cyber campaign, which National Security Agency Cybersecurity Collaboration Center Director Morgan Adamski noted spans Hawaii and other parts of the Indo-Pacific region. "It is very clear that Chinese attempts to compromise critical infrastructure are in part to pre-position themselves to be able to disrupt or destroy that critical infrastructure in the event of a conflict, to either prevent the United States from being able to project power into Asia or to cause societal chaos inside the United States to affect our decision-making around a crisis," said Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Executive Director Brandon Wales, who noted the significant shift in Chinese threat efforts that once prioritized cyberespionage.