Chinese cyberspies have hacked Middle East experts at major US think tanks

Middle East experts at major US think tanks were recently hacked by Chinese cyberspies as events in Iraq began to escalate, according to a cybersecurity firm that works with the institutions.

The group behind the breaches, called "DEEP PANDA" by security researchers, appears to be affiliated with the Chinese government, says Dmitri Alperovitch, chief technology officer of the firm CrowdStrike.

The company, which works with a number of think tanks on a pro bono basis, declined to name which ones have been breached. Alperovitch said the firm noticed a "radical" shift in DEEP PANDA's focus on June 18, the same day witnesses reported that Sunni extremists seized Iraq's largest oil refinery.

The Chinese group has typically focused on senior individuals at think tanks who follow Asia, said Alperovitch. But in June, it suddenly began targeting people with ties to Iraq and Middle East issues. This latest breach follows a pattern identified by experts of Chinese cyberspies targeting major Washington institutions, including think tanks and law firms.

It's rarely clear why Chinese cyberspies hack specific American targets, but experts say there are a few clues to why the DEEP PANDA group may have been interested in Middle East experts at think tanks.