Why the U.S. Is Charging China With Cyberspying on American Companies

Cyberspying is estimated to cost the U.S. economy tens of billions a year. “Enough is enough,” Attorney General Eric Holder said Monday.


The United States is charging the Chinese military with hacking into the computers of American companies in order to gain valuable trade secrets, marking the first time the U.S. has brought a criminal case against a foreign government for cyberspying.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced Monday an indictment of five officers of China's People's Liberation Army for breaches against six American companies.The charges follow an investigation by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh that concluded China's military officers conspired to hack into the computers of Westinghouse Electric, Alcoa, Allegheny Technologies, U.S. Steel, the United Steelworkers Union, and SolarWorld.

"When a foreign nation uses intelligence resources and tools against an American executive or corporation to obtain trade secrets or sensitive information for the benefit of state-owned companies, we must say 'enough is enough,' " Holder said. "This administration will not tolerate actions by any nation that seeks to illegally sabotaged American companies and undermines their competition in the operation of the free market."

Holder added: "Our economic security and our ability to compete fairly in the global marketplace are directly linked to our national security.… This case should serve as a wake-up call to the seriousness of the ongoing cyberthreat."