New Zealand says Chinese ‘state-sponsored’ group hacked parliament
New Zealand has accused Chinese state-backed hackers of infiltrating parliament and joined the US and UK in accusing Beijing of cyber terrorism. New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said on Tuesday that cyber attacks were “unacceptable” and that New Zealand’s concerns were being conveyed directly to Beijing.
Foreign interference of this nature is unacceptable and we urge China not to engage in such activities in the future. “New Zealand will continue to comment regularly and anticipate the types of behavior we will see,” Peters said.
Peters, who met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi last week, said New Zealand and China have an “important and complex relationship.” “We are cooperating with China in some areas in a good way,” he said, and said that we will raise our voice on issues that everyone is concerned about.
It was revealed that an attacker named “APT40”, a state-sponsored hacker group, infiltrated the computers connected to the meeting in 2021. GCSB Director General Andrew Clark said in a statement: “NCSC provides comprehensive support to victim organizations to reduce the impact of interventions and provides advice to other appropriate organizations who will be at risk because of their organisation.”
“Analysis of the strategies and tactics used by the attackers allowed us to securely link the attackers to a state-sponsored group in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) called APT40.” A spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in New Zealand said the accusation was “absurd and irresponsible”.
“We have never and will not interfere in the internal affairs of other countries, including New Zealand. It is wrong to accuse China of foreign intervention.”
New Zealand’s prosecution comes after the United States and Britain announced sanctions on Monday against a Chinese company and two men accused of running a cyberespionage campaign targeting millions of people, including MPs, voters and critics of Beijing. British Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden said that cyber attacks in 2021 and 2022 targeted the British Electoral and Financial Committee, including three members of the “Inter-Parliamentary China Alliance”.
New Zealand Defense Minister Judith Collins, who is responsible for the GCSB, said New Zealand stands with its international partners in condemning cyber attacks sponsored by the Chinese government. “The international community’s collective response is a reminder to all organizations and individuals to strengthen cybersecurity,” Collins said.
