US House Republicans Open Probe Into Alleged China Email Hack Of Federal Agencies - Letter

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd August, 2023) A group of US House Republican lawmakers on Wednesday sent a letter to the secretaries of State and Commerce, Antony Blinken and Gina Raimondo, saying that they have started an investigation into the recent breach of email systems in Federal agencies by China-based actors and requested briefings on the matter.

"According to recent reports, as part of a 'suspected cyber-espionage campaign to access data in sensitive computer networks' by China, the breaches reportedly occurred at over two dozen organizations, including some US government agencies. We request a briefing on the discovery of, impact of, and response to the intrusion," House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer and subcommittee chairs Nancy Mace and Glenn Grothman wrote in the letter.

The breaches occurred due to a "flaw in a microsoft cloud-computing environment," which allowed hackers to access email accounts, the letter said.

Lawmakers expressed concern that the attacks against the US government represent evidence of the new level of Chinese hacking skills and sophistication.

To support the investigation, the lawmakers called on the two agencies to provide special briefings on the impact of the intrusions and the government's response no later than August 9, the letter said.

Microsoft said in July that it was tracking a China-based actor known as Storm-0558 who gained access to email accounts, including US government accounts. The tech giant's analysis revealed that the cyber attacks have affected some 25 organizations, including government agencies.