The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s director reported on China’s extensive hacking operation aimed at destroying the United States’ power grid, oil pipelines, and water systems in a Taiwan conflict. The Chinese Communist Party seeks to cause confusion, demoralization, and hinder American military deployment. The F.B.I and Justice Department disclosed obtaining court orders to access servers infiltrated by Beijing-directed hacking network Volt Typhoon targeting critical infrastructure systems. China’s hackers intend to cause harm to American citizens and communities and seek to activate sleeper cells during a crisis. The U.S. issued warnings about China, Iran, and Russia’s malicious activities, intensifying its focus on China as an existential threat to national security. Government officials emphasize the impact on outdated routers susceptible to hacking in the U.S., aiming to induce societal panic and discourage U.S. support for Taiwan. China has denied targeting U.S. civilian infrastructure and made claims of avoiding infrastructure attacks directed by Beijing.
