Shocking report claims that China has installed malware on U.S. military networks amid threats of hacking from the Chinese.
According to The New York Times, the Biden administration believes China installed malware —described by one official as a “ticking time bomb”—designed to interrupt military operations across the U.S. and would allow the Chinese government to control our infrastructure.
US Hunts Chinese Malware That Can Disrupt Military/Civilian Operations!
— Sheldon Roth, M.D. (@SheldonRothMD1) July 30, 2023
Microsoft–Not Biden Govt–Discovered Embedded Code at Military Base!
Malware Aims at Society's Disruption Not Surveillance!
Compromised China-Biden Admin Asleep-at-the-Wheel!https://t.co/vbyRNWOu9x
It is still unclear whether China is aware of the malware or how successful it will be. The malware has been briefed to members of Congress, state governors, and utility companies.
Officials estimated that should the malware be activated—communications, computer networks, and power grids could be restored within days.
“The Biden administration is working relentlessly to defend the United States from any disruptions to our critical infrastructure, including by coordinating interagency efforts to protect water systems, pipelines, rail and aviation systems, among others,” said Adam R. Hodge, the acting spokesman for the National Security Council.
This comes as China has been working hard to try to breach America’s secrets through espionage. Efforts to install malware on American systems started at least a year before Microsoft disclosed in May that it had detected infrastructure hacking activity in Guam.
“China is steadfast and determined to penetrate our governments, our companies, our critical infrastructure,” said George Barnes, deputy director of the National Security Agency.
Earlier this year, a Chinese high-altitude balloon was spotted flying over several sensitive American military sites. The Defense Department has since confirmed that it is collecting information.
Months after the incident, two current senior U.S. officials and one former White House official told NBC that the intelligence China collected mostly came from electronic signals.
The Pentagon has not confirmed which sites were compromised by the surveillance balloon, but important installations in the balloon’s path included Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana, one of three bases that maintain and operate Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles; Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska, the headquarters of US Strategic Command, which oversees America’s nuclear forces; and Joint Base Charleston in South Carolina, which hosts two nuclear submarine squadrons.
The balloon first entered U.S. airspace over Alaska on Jan. 28 and was shot down off the coast of South Carolina on Feb. 4.
