Cloud Hopper: China’s APT10 group also compromised NTT data, DXC and others – report

Reuters has obtained more details about Cloud Hopper attacks that besieged Western tech firms

Hackers working on behalf of China’s intelligence services compromised the networks of some of the world’s biggest technology service providers, according to an exclusive Reuters report.

The Cloud Hopper attacks were first detailed by a US indictment in December. APT10 group, a hacking group alleged to work on behalf of the Chinese state, is reported to have begun attacking Western technology firms in 2014 in an attempt to steal data that could boost its economic interests.

Reports at the time revealed HPE and IBM were targeted, but now sources familiar with the attacks have revealed more details about the operation, informing Reuters that numerous other technology providers were affected.

Reuters claims that at least six other firms were compromised, including Fujitsu, Tata Consultancy Services, NTT Data, Dimension Data, Computer Sciences Corporation and HPE’s DXC Technology.

Clients of the service providers, including Ericsson and shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries were affected, Reuters claimed.

“While there have been attacks on our enterprise network, we have found no evidence in any of our extensive investigations that Ericsson’s infrastructure has ever been used as part of a successful attack on one of our customers,” an Ericsson spokesperson told Reuters.

Reuters has also obtained documents detailing APT10’s attack on HPE. The documents show that the group stole whole directories of credentials and deliberately littered their code with expletives and taunts, such as “FUCK ANY AV [anti-virus]”.

China has repeatedly denied the accusations and said it opposes cyber-industrial espionage. “The Chinese government has never in any form participated in or supported any person to carry out the theft of commercial secrets,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry told Reuters.