US, UK and allies tie Chinese government to Microsoft hack

The group of nations said the Chinese government has been the mastermind behind a series of malicious ransomware, data theft and cyber-espionage attacks against public and private entities.

The U.S., U.K. and their allies formally attributed the Microsoft Exchange hack to actors affiliated with the Chinese government and accused the Chinese government of a broad array of “malicious cyber activities,” escalating last week’s tensions between the White House and China. The group of nations said Monday that the Chinese government has been the mastermind behind a series of malicious ransomware, data theft and cyber-espionage attacks against public and private entities, including the sprawling Microsoft Exchange hack earlier this year. “The Chinese Government must end this systematic cyber sabotage and can expect to be held account if it does not,” U.K. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said Monday in a statement.