Chinese hackers have “persistently” infiltrated the New York Times for the last four months, the US paper says.
The New York Times said the attacks coincided with its report into claims that the family of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao had amassed a multi-billion dollar fortune.
The hackers used methods which have been “associated with the Chinese military” to target the emails of the report’s writer, the paper said.
China’s foreign ministry dismissed the accusations as “groundless”.
“To arbitrarily assert and to conclude without hard evidence that China participated in such hacking attacks is totally irresponsible,” said spokesman Hong Lei.
“China is also a victim of hacking attacks. Chinese laws clearly forbid hacking attacks, and we hope relevant parties takes a responsible attitude on this issue.”
According to the New York Times, the hackers first broke into their computer system in September, as the report on Wen Jiabao was nearing completion.
The report, which was dismissed as a “smear” by the Chinese government, said Wen Jiabao’s relatives had amassed assets worth at least $2.7 billion through business dealings. It did not accuse the Chinese premier of wrongdoing.
China is sensitive about reports on its leaders, particularly when it comes to their wealth.
The New York Times said the hacking was focused on the computers of David Barboza, the paper’s bureau chief in Shanghai who wrote the report, and one of his predecessors, Jim Yardley.
The New York Times said the attacks coincided with its report into claims that the family of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao had amassed a multi-billion dollar fortune
Internet security firm Mandiant, which was hired by the Times to trace the attack, followed the hackers’ movements for four months, to try to establish a pattern and block them.
The hackers had installed malware which enabled them to access any computer using the New York Times network, steal the password of every employee, and access 53 personal computers, mostly outside the Times offices.
The security firm found that in an attempt to hide the origin of the attack, it had been routed through computers in US universities which, the paper said, “matches the subterfuge used in many other attacks that Mandiant has tracked to China”.
The Times said experts had found that the attacks “started from the same university computers used by the Chinese military to attack United States military contractors in the past”.
They found the hackers began working for the most part at 08:00 Beijing time.
Mandiant’s chief security officer, Richard Bejtlich, said that “if you look at each attack in isolation, you can’t say, <<This is the Chinese military>>,” but that the similar patterns and targets of the attacks indicated a connection.
“When you see the same group steal data on Chinese dissidents and Tibetan activists, then attack an aerospace company, it starts to push you in the right direction,” he said.
The paper said no personal data of staff or customers was stolen and that no attempt was made to shut down its website.
“They could have wreaked havoc on our systems,” said chief information officer Marc Frons. But he said what they appeared to be looking for were “the names of people who might have provided information to Mr. Barboza”.
There was also no evidence that sensitive emails or files on the Wen family had been accessed, or that the intruders had sought information unrelated to the Wen family, the paper said.
The New York Times has announced that access to its website is being blocked inside China after it published an investigation into wealth accumulated by relatives of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao.
In its report, the New York Times said Wen Jiabao’s family members “have controlled assets worth at least $2.7 billion”.
Holdings included property, insurance and construction firms, it said.
Both the NYT‘s Chinese and English sites are blocked, as are references to the report on micro-blogging sites.
“Many relatives of Wen Jiabao, including his son, daughter, younger brother and brother-in-law, have become extraordinarily wealthy during his leadership,” the newspaper wrote in a lengthy report.
“In many cases, the names of the relatives have been hidden behind layers of partnerships and investment vehicles involving friends, work colleagues and business partners.”
The family’s investments reportedly spanned several sectors. The newspaper cited one holding as Ping An, an insurance company which it said had benefited from reforms enacted in 2004 by a state body over which Wen Jiabao had oversight.
It said that partnerships controlled by Wen Jiabao’s relatives, along with their friends and colleagues, had bought into the firm before its IPO, or stock market flotation, in 2004, and held as much as $2.2bn in the company in 2007.
The newspaper said both the Chinese government and Wen Jiabao’s relatives declined to comment on the investigation, which was based on corporate records from 1992-2012.
No holdings were found in Wen Jiaobao’s name, it said, nor was it possible “to determine from the documents whether he recused himself from any decisions that might have affected his relatives’ holdings, or whether they received preferential treatment on investments”.
China is sensitive about reports on its leaders, particularly when it comes to their wealth.
A growing wealth gap is causing public discontent, as are the frequent corruption scandals involving government officials.
When, in June 2012, a Bloomberg investigative report examined the finances of the relatives of president-in-waiting Xi Jinping, the company’s website was blocked in China – even though the report said there was no indication of wrongdoing by him or his family.
Wen Jiabao has been the Chinese premier for almost 10 years. He is due to step down in a power transition that begins on 8 November.
He is seen as a popular figure with the common touch, and is portrayed in state media as a leader with great concern for the lives of ordinary people.
A spokeswoman for the New York Times said she hoped that full access to the websites would be “restored shortly” in China.
On China’s Twitter-like Weibo platforms, keywords such as Wen Jiabao and the New York Times are blocked. Wen Jiabao’s name, like most other Chinese leaders, has always been a screened keyword.
Some netizens did manage to post the article despite heavy and rapid censorship. A Sina Weibo user tweeted about the article from Kawagoe city in Japan, but his post was removed after 11 minutes.
“The Twist Your Waist Times says the best actor has $2.7bn of assets. I just wonder how will he spend it?” asked a Tencent Weibo user registered in the British West Indies territory of the Turks and Caicos Islands.
“Twist your waist” in Chinese characters sounds like New York when spoken, while “best actor” refers to Wen Jiabao, who critics say only pretends to be a people-first leader.
Wen Jiabao:
• Became premier in March 2003, charged with overseeing the economy
• Portrayed in state media as a man who cares for the public
• Began career in provincial geology bureau but was quickly promoted
• Seen as a economic reformist critical of Bo Xilai’s “Chongqing model” and “Red” policies
NYT: Billions in Hidden Riches for Family of Chinese Leader
