China Hacked the Fed, NASA and the Senate – Washington Just Struck Back
AT A GLANCE
- DOJ seized domains behind two Chinese hacking tools, QScan and QTRouter
- Targets included the Justice Department, NASA, the Federal Reserve and the Senate
- Energy Department labs, HHS, NIH and four companies in the US and South Korea were also hit
- The campaign allegedly runs back to 2018; Beijing denies any wrongdoing
A years-long hacking campaign tied to Chinese state intelligence has reached deep into US government networks, reviving fears over cybersecurity gaps in critical institutions.
The US Justice Department says it has disrupted a long-running Chinese hacking operation that targeted some of the country’s most sensitive institutions. Officials seized the domains behind two hacking platforms, QScan and QTRouter, allegedly used to break into government networks since at least 2018.
KEY DETAILS
An affidavit names the Energy Department, HHS, NIH, and four companies in the US and South Korea as confirmed victims. NASA’s systems were targeted in 2019, and the Senate was scanned for weaknesses as recently as March 2026. The DOJ links the tools to Nanjing Xinjiuwei Network Technology, allegedly working for China’s Ministry of State Security and the People’s Liberation Army. Beijing’s embassy denies the claims, calling US cybersecurity accusations a pretext for restricting Chinese firms.
WHY IT MATTERS
State-linked cyberattacks on financial and government infrastructure keep resurfacing as a geopolitical flashpoint. For traders, they’re a reminder that cybersecurity and defense-adjacent sectors often move on headlines like this, even without a single earnings report changing.
Expect more disclosures as investigators unpack the scope of the breach, and more diplomatic friction between Washington and Beijing.
Stay ahead of every market-moving headline with QuoMarkets.
Source: Reuters
