U.S. officials on Tuesday imposed sanctions on a Chinese cybersecurity company that the Treasury Department said could have caused casualties in cyberattacks, and two “Myanmar” companies accused of helping Myanmar's military conduct brutal bombings in areas close to fighting across the country. civilian.
The U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement Sichuan Silent Information TechnologyIn April 2020, a Chengdu-based company and its employee Guan Tianfeng deployed malware in more than 80,000 firewalls operated by thousands of companies around the world.
The malware steals data and uses it to deploy ransomware, encrypting data and bringing down corporate networks. Three dozen firewalls are protecting critical infrastructure companies' systems, and if the hack is not stopped or mitigated, the potential impact “could result in serious injury or death,” the statement said.
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An energy company targeted by the Sichuan Silent Hacking campaign was said to have been “actively involved in drilling” during the attack. The statement said that if not thwarted, “it could have resulted in the oil rig malfunctioning.”
No further details about the incident were provided. Reuters could not immediately find contact information for Guan.
Sichuan Silent has previously been accused of engaging in malicious digital activities. In 2021, Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, claimed it was linked to an online influence campaign that promoted claims by a bogus biologist that the United States was interfering in the search for the origins of Covid-19.
Beijing often denies involvement in hacking and other malicious cyber activities.
The U.S. State Department also announced a Rewards for Justice program Bonus offers Information about Sichuan's silence or closure could be worth up to $10 million.
Myanmar company “aided bombing attacks”
Myanmar company Sky Aviator Company Ltd and Synpex Shwe Company Ltdis also added to the entity list.
The U.S. Commerce Department said Sky Aviator and Syntax Shwe “provided parts to the Myanmar military, enabling the military to commit human rights abuses, including Brutal air strikes targeting civilians”.
Two Chinese companies hit for human rights abuses
The United States also added two Chinese companies to a list of trade restrictions on Tuesday for allegedly contributing to human rights abuses, as President Joe Biden continues to pressure Beijing in his final days in office.
The Ministry of Commerce, which oversees export policy, added Zhejiang Yushi Technology Co., Ltd. “Because it can lead to human rights abuses, including high-tech surveillance of the general population, Uyghurs and members of other ethnic and religious minorities,” the agency said in a document.
Beijing Zhongdun Security Technology Group was added to the list for selling products that “enable Chinese public security agencies to commit human rights abuses.”
Uniview did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Beijing Zhongdun could not be reached for comment.
In recent years, the United States has used the Entity List to punish Chinese companies it accuses of aiding China's crackdown on Uyghurs and other minority groups, such as video surveillance company Hikvision, which was placed on the Entity List in 2019.
Being placed on the Entity List forces a target's U.S. suppliers to obtain difficult-to-obtain licenses before shipping to them. Six other entities in Russia and Myanmar were added on Tuesday.
- Reuters Additional input and editing by Jim Pollard
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