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An actor affiliated with the Chinese government recently hacked the U.S. Treasury Department in a “major incident,” officials said Monday.
In a letter obtained by FOX Business, the Treasury Department disclosed the incident to the leadership of the Senate Banking Committee. Officials became aware of the breach on December 8.
The cybercriminal allegedly gained access to Treasury Department workstations and documents via a security key.
“Once Treasury was alerted by the service provider, we immediately contacted the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and worked with law enforcement partners across government to determine the impact of this incident,” the spokesperson said.
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The U.S. Treasury Building, photographed Friday, July 16, 2021, in Washington, DC. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images/Getty Images)
“The compromised BeyondTrust service was taken offline and there is no evidence to indicate that the malicious actor continued to access Treasury systems or information.”
The news came as Chinese state-affiliated hackers continue their espionage campaign against the US government. Last week, the White House said that Chinese authorities accessed Americans’ private text messages and phone conversations by targeting a U.S. telecommunications company – the ninth telecommunications company affected by the Chinese hack.
Speaking to reporters, Deputy National Security Advisor Anne Neuberger said the government planned further measures in the coming weeks in response to the hacking campaign, but did not release specific details.
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The Department of the Treasury building is seen in Washington, DC on August 29, 2022. ((Photo by DANIEL SLIM/AFP via Getty Images) / Getty Images)
Neuberger said the number of Americans affected by the recent telecommunications attack is unknown because Chinese hackers are careful to cover their tracks. Most of the victims were in Washington, D.C. and Virginia.
“We believe the goal was to identify who owned these phones and whether they were targets of government interest for spying and intelligence gathering about communications, text messages and phone calls on these phones individuals,” she explained.
Salt Typhoon, which U.S. officials call the Chinese government’s spy unit, has been active for four years. It is unclear whether the most recent Treasury incident involved Salt Typhoon or another CCP-affiliated actor.
Chinese President Xi Jinping applauds during the joint press conference of the China-Central Asia Summit in Xian, north China’s Shaanxi Province, May 19, 2023. (Photo by FLORENCE LO/POOL/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
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FOX Business reached out to the Treasury Department for more information, but did not immediately receive a response.
Landon Mion of FOX Business contributed to this report.