US Company Sues Chinese Competitor Over Stolen Confidential Information

Chinese People’s Liberation Army Soldier Accused of Hacking US Telecommunications Companies

The US Department of Justice has released an indictment against a Chinese People’s Liberation Army soldier, Jia Wei, accused of illegally accessing the networks of US telecommunications companies and stealing proprietary information. The indictment alleges that Jia Wei, a Chinese national, is a soldier in Unit 61786 of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, which is affiliated with the 1st Bureau of the 3rd Department of the General Staff Department of the People’s Liberation Army.

Unit 61786 is stationed in Haidian District, Beijing, and is responsible for collecting intelligence for the Chinese Communist Party. According to the indictment, Jia Wei was assigned to the military unit and was tasked with gathering communications and information through hacking. He is accused of hacking the network of an American company along with members of the 61786th unit in March 2017.

The company had earlier sued its China-based competitor for allegedly stealing trade secrets. Chinese Communist Party People’s Liberation Army hackers are believed to have infiltrated US corporate networks and obtained and copied documents related to civilian and military communications devices, product development information, test plans, and internal evaluation documents.

The hackers also obtained documents related to Chinese competitors. They continued their cyberattacks until May 2017, including an attempt to install malware on the internal computer networks of a US company in April 2017.

US prosecutors detected these allegations and investigated them, and in March 2022, they indicted Jia Wei on six counts, including telecommunications fraud, computer hacking conspiracy, computer hacking, and aggravated identity theft. An arrest warrant has been issued.

If convicted, Jia Wei faces up to 20 years in prison for the telecommunications fraud charge, five years for the computer intrusion and conspiracy to commit intrusion, and two years for the aggravated identity theft charge.

US Government Cracks Down on Chinese Cyberattacks

Matthew Axelrod, US Under Secretary of Commerce, stated that the US government is committed to protecting American technology from Chinese cyberattacks. “We launched the Disruptive Technology Strike Force a year and a half ago to protect American technology,” he said. “We have filed 24 criminal cases so far, resulting in millions of dollars in fines. We have also placed numerous companies on sanctions lists.”

The US views Chinese Communist Party-sponsored cyberattacks as the greatest threat to national security. FBI Director Christopher Wray has blamed People’s Liberation Army hackers and other hacker groups with ties to the Chinese Communist Party for several large-scale data breaches.

Protecting National Security

The US government is taking steps to protect national security from Chinese cyberattacks. The indictment against Jia Wei is part of this effort. The US government is committed to holding individuals and companies accountable for their role in Chinese cyberattacks.