<p>The Chinese army is behind a series of cyberattacks on US companies and institutions, according to a study by a US computer security company.<br /><br /></p>.<p>A 60-page report released Tuesday by Mandiant says that a Shanghai-based group of hackers designated by the company as APT-1 "is likely government-sponsored and one of the most persistent of China's cyber threat actors".<br /><br />APT-1 activities appear to coincide with those of People's Liberation Army Unit 61398, whose headquarters are in the Pudong district of Shanghai, Mandiant said.<br /><br />Though the company has been unable to directly trace APT-1 hackers to the Unit 61398 building, it believes there can be no other explanation for why so many attacks are launched from the same, relatively small area.<br /><br />The attacks have been on the rise for two years, according to Mandiant, adding that cyber-strikes on least 20 sectors have been identified, from military contractors to chemical plants and including telecommunications companies.<br /><br />"Hacking attacks are transnational and anonymous. Determining their origins are extremely difficult. We don't know how the evidence in this so-called report can be tenable," a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said Tuesday.<br /><br />"Arbitrary criticism based on rudimentary data is irresponsible, unprofessional and not helpful in resolving the issue," Hong Lei said. <br /></p>
<p>The Chinese army is behind a series of cyberattacks on US companies and institutions, according to a study by a US computer security company.<br /><br /></p>.<p>A 60-page report released Tuesday by Mandiant says that a Shanghai-based group of hackers designated by the company as APT-1 "is likely government-sponsored and one of the most persistent of China's cyber threat actors".<br /><br />APT-1 activities appear to coincide with those of People's Liberation Army Unit 61398, whose headquarters are in the Pudong district of Shanghai, Mandiant said.<br /><br />Though the company has been unable to directly trace APT-1 hackers to the Unit 61398 building, it believes there can be no other explanation for why so many attacks are launched from the same, relatively small area.<br /><br />The attacks have been on the rise for two years, according to Mandiant, adding that cyber-strikes on least 20 sectors have been identified, from military contractors to chemical plants and including telecommunications companies.<br /><br />"Hacking attacks are transnational and anonymous. Determining their origins are extremely difficult. We don't know how the evidence in this so-called report can be tenable," a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said Tuesday.<br /><br />"Arbitrary criticism based on rudimentary data is irresponsible, unprofessional and not helpful in resolving the issue," Hong Lei said. <br /></p>