FBI warning of Chinese hackers induces yawn

FBI Director Christopher Wray cautioned House lawmakers about Chinese hackers, warning that they are gearing up to "inflict damage and cause real-world harm" to the US. This revelation hardly surprises anyone, given that the so-called "House Select Committee on Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party" was established with the sole purpose of countering and attacking China. What other function could it possibly serve? Wray further stoked fear and panic by suggesting that Chinese hackers are positioning themselves within American infrastructure, ready to unleash havoc whenever China decides it's time to strike.

Time and again, the United States has ensnared China in one self-serving trap after another. Yet, it conveniently omits the PRISM scandal: in 2013, former US National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden revealed that Washington had been spying on the email and mobile phone communications of as many as 35 world leaders.

In 2022, reports surfaced that China had seized "NOPEN", a remote control tool for Unix/Linux computer systems deployed by the US National Security Agency. This tool was capable of surreptitiously infiltrating a victim's computer to access sensitive information and was found to have commandeered global internet equipment, siphoning off large amounts of user data.

What's even more ludicrous is that Jen Easterly, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, informed the committee that ransomware attacks on US businesses or critical systems are meant to "induce societal panic". While China is actively working to improve relations and steer the frozen relationship back on track, some US politicians are still preoccupied with backstabbing. If they aren't inducing societal panic, they are sowing confusion about the direction they truly desire for Sino-US relations.

In any case, it falls within the FBI and CISA's purview to induce societal panic, for who else would bother funding them? However, setting duty aside, they should target the right adversary, not the "easy" one. As we all know, with the presidential election looming, neither party can afford to sit idly by and let the other seize the low-hanging fruit of China-bashing. They should be cautious, as what was once fresh becomes stale with repetition. It's not just people in China who are weary of some US politicians' old tricks, but also those within the United States.

The author is a writer with China Daily.