Vulnerability Management, Threat Management

FBI: US-based Chinese nationals targeted by China-impersonating cyberattacks

The FBI has warned that U.S.-based Chinese nationals are being subjected to new fraud attacks involving threat actors masquerading as Chinese law enforcement officers or prosecutors, according to The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future. Attackers have been exploiting the Chinese government's harassment efforts in U.S. citizen repatriation in their scheme, with victims being threatened to pay a certain amount to avoid arrest or violence in relation to phony financial crime charges, said the FBI in a public service announcement. "Criminals typically call victims, sometimes using spoofed numbers to appear as if the call is from the Chinese Ministry of Public Security, one of its localized Public Security Bureaus, or a U.S.-based Chinese Consulate. Criminals may also communicate through online applications," the alert said. Individuals facing such threats have been urged to immediately contact their FBI field office and report the cases to FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center.

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