A Chinese hacked scheme was focused on harassing dissidents
i-Soon: A Chinese Company Supporting Cyber Espionage Operations Out of China, and a New Leap to Google Cloud
A new leak of sensitive documents shows that a Chinese company has been engaging in hacking activity against targets for the Chinese government. The majority of operations from i-Soon were focused on harassing and surveiling critics of the Chinese government. The target lists reveal 14 government agencies, academic institutions and pro-democracy organizations.
The majority of the operations seem to be focused on surveilling and harassing dissidents who criticize the Chinese government on global social media platforms.
Target lists reveal victims from at least 14 governments from Pakistan to Australia, as well as academic institutions, pro-democracy organizations in places like Hong Kong, as well as the military alliance NATO. The company was also bidding for work to surveil the minority Uyghur population in Xinxiang, a broader Chinese government program that major global human rights’ organizations around the world have heavily criticized. There are pictures of custom devices used for espionage, including a recording device and power bank.
The leak was shared to the open source development website called GitHub, which is still being investigated by cybersecurity researchers. Experts from top U.S. cybersecurity companies have shared preliminary analysis of the contents of the leak, believing the documents to be authentic.
“We have every reason to believe this is the authentic data of a contractor supporting global and domestic cyber espionage operations out of China,” said John Hultquist, the chief analyst for Mandiant Intelligence, a part of Google Cloud. “This leak is narrow, but it is deep. We don’t usually get such unfettered access to the inner workings of an intelligence operation. We are working hard to learn as much as we can and put it to good use.”
In previous public materials, i-Soon has noted relationships with China’s Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of State Security, and People’s Liberation Army, among others. The company is publicly known for providing cybersecurity trainings around the country from its base in Shanghai.
There are internal insights into how the marketplace for hacking operations within China functions from the details in the leak. The ability to break into devices made by top U.S. companies like Apple and Microsoft may be untrue, according to marketing materials included in the leak. However, it’s clear that the company is heavily invested in automating the ability to constantly monitor platforms like X and Facebook. The fact that the Chinese government does not control those platforms has made them popular with dissidents.
Alabama legislators move to protect IVF; massive leak reveals Chinese hacking operations: How Russian troops invaded Ukraine and how Russian naval fleet moves to the Black Sea
Thank you for the good morning. You are reading a newsletter. You can subscribe here to receive the news straight to your inbox, and you can also listen to theUp First radio show for all the news you need to start.
Since the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos should be considered children, at least three fertility clinics in Alabama have stopped or restricted in situ fertilization services. Legislators in the state are now pushing forward proposals to clarify the court’s ruling.
Space company Intuitive Machines has completed the the first commercial spacecraft landing on the moon. It’s the first U.S. lunar landing since the Apollo program ended more than five decades ago. Several NASA experiments, which will be used to study the environment around the landers and to develop some new technologies for future landings, are carried by the robotic probe Odysseus.
Russia invaded Ukraine on the second anniversary. After months of stalemate, Russia saw a victory when it occupied the eastern Ukrainian town of Avdiivka. The Russian naval fleet was moved to the Black Sea because of the progress made by Ukrainian troops.
Source: Alabama lawmakers move to protect IVF; massive leak reveals Chinese hacking operations
The Kamogowa Food Detectives: What to Expect from a Taiwanese Meatmaker’s Dilemma?
See photos of some delectable dishes and learn about theDutch, Japanese and Chinese influences on Taiwanese cuisine. Be warned: These photos will make you hungry!
TV: Constellation is a space drama featuring an astronaut struggling to survive and return to Earth after everything goes wrong. It’s a slow build, but as the clues make more sense, the show becomes more disturbing and profound.
Books: The bestselling Japanese mystery series The Kamogowa Food Detectives is now available in English. Nagare investigates his client’s forgotten dishes in the first novel.
Alynda Segarra records music under the name Hurray for Riff Raff. The Past is Still Alive explores the personal stories of their youth.
