Second Chinese Hacker Unit Uncovered by Researchers

For the last seven years, Unit 61486 of China’s military has been stealing from and spying United States, Europe, and Japan. Its actions are detailed in a new report.
Second Chinese Hacker Unit Uncovered by Researchers
The People’s Liberation Army Unit 61398, which engages in cyberespionage, is believed to reside in this building outside Shanghai, China. AP Photo
Joshua Philipp
Updated:

For the last seven years, a unit in China’s military has been stealing from and spying on private industries and government agencies in the United States, Europe, and Japan.

The attacks come from Unit 61486, which is under the main Signals Intelligence collection agency of China’s People’s Liberation Army.

Details of the unit were uncovered by forensic researchers of security company CrowdStrike, who released their findings in a June 9 report. A key role of the unit, they state, “was stealing trade secrets from U.S. defense and European satellite and aerospace industries.”

CrowdStrike’s findings come less than a month after the U.S. Justice Department charged five officers of the Chinese military for their involvement in economic theft from U.S. businesses.

Unit 61486 is now the second major unit of the Chinese military found to be involved in economic theft. The first, whose officers are being charged in U.S. courts, were part of Unit 61398.

Joshua Philipp
Joshua Philipp
Author
Joshua Philipp is senior investigative reporter and host of “Crossroads” at The Epoch Times. As an award-winning journalist and documentary filmmaker, his works include "The Real Story of January 6" (2022), "The Final War: The 100 Year Plot to Defeat America" (2022), and "Tracking Down the Origin of Wuhan Coronavirus" (2020).
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