Can the US stop Chinese cyberattacks?
Chinese hackers reportedly outnumber FBI cyber personnel by a ratio of 50 to 1


A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
Chinese hackers have hit American targets again. U.S. authorities recently announced the discovery of Chinese malware in critical telecommunications systems in Guam, The New York Times reported. That's alarming because Guam is home to an American air base that "would be a centerpiece of any American military response to an invasion or blockade of Taiwan."
The attack came as no surprise, because Chinese cyber operations regularly go after American targets. China denies the hacking allegations, Financial Times reported. In an official statement, the Foreign Ministry said the Guam attacking announcement "shows that the U.S. is expanding channels for disseminating false information." But the hackers behind the Guam breach "have been spying on the U.S. military for years," The Record reported. They've even scanned the computer systems of political parties in U.S. states.
"China almost certainly is capable of launching cyberattacks that could disrupt critical infrastructure services within the United States," the Office of the Director of National Intelligence warned earlier this year. FBI director Christopher Wray told Congress in April that Chinese hackers outnumber his agency's cyber personnel by a ratio of 50 to 1. Those hackers have created techniques that "enable them to burrow into government and business networks and spy on victims for years without detection," The Wall Street Journal reported in March. Can the United States defend itself against a foreign cyberattack?
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
What are the commentators saying?
America needs minimum cybersecurity standards, Eric Noonan wrote at The Hill. While Russia is the "threat du jour" because of its expansive use of online attacks, China is the greater threat. The country's hackers have "been breaking into computer networks of government contractors for the better part of two decades," but action to counter those attacks "hasn't been swift enough." Time is officially running out. "We are getting to a point where we can either pay now or pay later."
People in Western democracies enjoy the fruits of living in open societies, wrote Max Hastings at Bloomberg, but that also leaves us "more vulnerable to attack, especially by foreign intelligence services." The growing threat of cyberattacks means that greater coordination is needed between America's intelligence community and domestic technology companies. The problem? Those companies often "recoil" at that kind of cooperation. "Today, patriotism has atrophied." It's time to reverse that: "Now that cyberattacks have become a routine part of the 21st century, the West is obliged to defend itself daily."
That constant conflict makes it difficult to calm simmering tensions, Paul Wallis wrote at Digital Journal. "Russia and China have large investments in cyberwarfare," he writes. "So does the U.S." That undermines the trust that will be needed to maintain the peace between countries. "It's hard to discuss anything with someone you know for a fact is trying to hack you all the time."
What's next?
Even before the latest news, the FBI was requesting Congress give it $63 million to fund 192 new cyber positions, CNBC said. The idea is to put staff in field offices "closer to where victims of cyber crimes actually are."
The strongest defense the United States has against Chinese attacks might be a digital form of mutually assured destruction. After all, as Politico reported, America has its own hackers, and they have proven fairly effective in the past. The U.S. is "one of the most advanced nations in cyberspace" although its actual capabilities are a "closely guarded secret." That means the cyberattacks can go both ways. "China has to worry about our capabilities, and they have to put it as part of their equation," Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) said. "Every action has a reaction."
In the meantime, the Guam attack may undermine a hoped-for thaw in U.S.-China relations following the overflight of a Chinese spy balloon earlier this year, NBC added. News of the hacking arrived just as officials of both countries began cabinet-level economic talks, said State Department spokesman Matt Miller: "We do intend to use our conversations with the Chinese government to press on areas where we have concerns."
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Joel Mathis is a freelance writer who lives in Lawrence, Kansas with his wife and son. He spent nine years as a syndicated columnist, co-writing the RedBlueAmerica column as the liberal half of a point-counterpoint duo. His honors include awards for best online commentary from the Online News Association and (twice) from the City and Regional Magazine Association.
-
Is Donald Trump finished in New York?
Today's Big Question How the former president's fraud ruling could ruin him in the city that made him famous
By Rafi Schwartz Published
-
Windmill whales
Cartoons
By The Week Staff Published
-
Why the FTC antitrust lawsuit against Amazon is so consequential
Talking Point While it's not the first case the federal agency brought against the company, it might be the biggest challenge yet
By Theara Coleman Published
-
10 things you need to know today: July 8, 2023
Daily Briefing White House defends controversial delivery of cluster bombs to Ukraine, Yellen urges economic harmony between China and US, and more
By Justin Klawans Published
-
The China-Cuba connection, explained
Speed Read Reports of an eavesdropping deal roil Washington
By Joel Mathis Published
-
US confirms China has been spying from Cuban base
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Xi Jinping tells national security team to prepare for 'worst-case scenario'
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
China plans to land astronaut on the moon by 2030, official says
Speed Read
By Theara Coleman Published
-
Elderly American citizen gets life sentence in China for espionage
Speed Read
By Theara Coleman Published
-
Hidden in plain sight: The hunt for China's 'secret police offices'
Speed Read According to reports, these stations are all over — and there are tons of them
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Beijing hospital fire kills 29 people, mostly elderly patients
Speed Read
By Theara Coleman Published