Countering “cyber and other threats posed by the People's Republic of China” (PRC) is a top priority for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) by the end of 2025, according to a guidance document released by the department last Thursday. The document describes a “society-wide effort” to protect critical infrastructure from external threats, and China tops the list.
Other priorities include managing “emerging risks” from artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies, reducing supply chain vulnerabilities, preparing for climate change-related threats to critical infrastructure, and reducing reliance on satellite-based services and communications. Includes removal.
“From the banking system to the electric grid, from health care to our nation's water system and more, we value the reliable operation of our critical infrastructure as a matter of national security, economic security and public safety. depend on,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement.
According to the memo, the federal government and the intelligence community view China as one of the top national security threats and are particularly concerned about China's ability and “willingness” to launch cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure. It is good. The memo also warns of potential threats from “other lethal 'gray zone' activities,” including financial investments, “traditional espionage,” and insider threats.
This April, FBI Director Christopher Wray said that hackers linked to the Chinese government had gained access to critical US infrastructure and were “waiting for the right moment to deliver a devastating blow.” In a speech at the Vanderbilt Summit on Modern Conflicts and Emerging Threats, Ray said hackers from the cyber group Volt Typhoon have breached several U.S. companies in the telecom, energy and water sectors.
DHS established a China Working Group in 2020 to address China's “malicious activity in the domains of trade, cybersecurity, immigration, and intellectual property.”
In 2022, DHS published a “Strategic Action Plan” to address China's threats to national security, looking at everything from immigration violations to intellectual property rights violations. Action items include exploring ways to expand trade with “new chip sectors and like-minded economic partners, including India and Taiwan” and prioritizing efforts to protect U.S. infrastructure from “malicious PRC cyber activity.” Is. And last year, Meyerkas announced a department-wide 90-day “PRC Threats Sprint.” As with the 2022 plan, Sprint emphasized the need to defend critical infrastructure against potential cyberattacks, as well as a commitment to use DHS's immigration enforcement apparatus to identify “illegal travelers” from China. Daya who “comes to America to gather intelligence, steal intellectual property. And harass dissenters.”
Congress has also become increasingly hawkish on China. In 2013, the Cybersecurity Subcommittee of the House Homeland Security Committee held a hearing on threats to US infrastructure from China, Russia, and Iran. Congress's push to ban TikTok until it divests from its Beijing-based parent company is largely rooted in national security concerns. Earlier this month, the House Committee on Homeland Security introduced a bill that would bar DHS from buying batteries from six Chinese companies.