Lawmakers: Don’t Take China-Linked US Hack Lying Down

The Obama Administration should retaliate for a cyberattack on federal employee records that was the worst breach the US government has ever suffered, members of Congress said on June 7. “There has to be a price to pay for this,” said Rep Peter King (R-NY), who sits on both the intelligence and Homeland Security committees.

US officials suspect that the Chinese government was behind the theft of records maintained by the Office of Personnel Management, the government’s human-resources department. Hackers stole data on as many as 4 million current and former federal employees before the attack was discovered in April, the government said on June 4. “This is the most significant breach of federal networks in US history,” said House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mike McCaul (R-TX). Hackers aimed to gather personal information on political appointees and federal employees in order to recruit spies or “compromise individuals” for espionage purposes, Chairman McCaul said. Rep King said that the Obama Administration should determine appropriate timing and methods to retaliate, and should keep its plans secret.