US charges Chinese hacker who harvested data of 78m people

A US federal grand jury on May 9 charged a Chinese national in a hacking campaign described by the Justice Department as “one of the worst data breaches in history”, an effort that yielded the personal data of 78 million people, Star.com reports.

Wang Fujie, also known as Dennis Wang, and another individual in the indictment, are alleged to have infiltrated the US-based computer systems of US health insurer Anthem and three other companies, the Justice Department said in a statement on May 9.

“The allegations in the indictment unsealed today outline the activities of a brazen China-based computer hacking group that committed one of the worst data breaches in history,” Assistant Attorney General Brian Benczkowski, said in the announcement.

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“These defendants allegedly attacked US businesses operating in four distinct industry sectors, and violated the privacy of over 78 million people by stealing their [personally identifiable information].”

The indictment was the latest in a series of efforts by the US Federal Bureau of Investigations to tackle alleged hacking operations and cybertheft emanating from China. The bureau has become increasingly vocal about the country.
The second suspect, who was identified in court documents as John Doe and through aliases including Zhou Zhihong, conducted the alleged hacking activities in China.

The other three companies affected by the hacks, conducted between February 2018 and January 2019, operated in the technology, basic materials and communication services sectors, according to the department.

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