US Accuses China of COVID-19 Centric Cyberattacks

Firstly, if allegations are true, this situation brings to light how nations truly see each other. Even in the face of a global pandemic, there are multiple situations at play, at all times. If cyber-adversaries compromise proprietary COVID-19 information, the US loses leverage. If the US has a lead in the vaccination department, that edge is lost if someone else knows what the US is hiding. For example, the US’ 2009 allegations that China stole sensitive data on Lockheed Martin’s F-35 fighter jets (BBC, 2020). If the US isn’t carrying the biggest “fighter jet stick,” it loses both hard and soft power in certain situations. The same can be applied to COVID-19 treatments. 

Secondly, while the race to respond, prevent, and immunize against COVID-19 appears to be at the forefront of the global mindspace, it seems that the rules of international espionage have “changed.” According to a Wired article, while countries may proclaim they are willing to collaborate internationally on finding a vaccine, they are also willing to conduct their own espionage to see what others may not be saying upfront. Jason Healey, a senior research scholar at Columbia University, stated that while the US may be naming China specifically, the FBI/CISA joint statement did not specify that it was on the grounds of gaining national security, or a competitive, edge. It would appear that they are arguing “norms” (Newman, 2020). The norms that Healey mentions is simply a reference to the generally accepted code of conduct that happens during normal espionage activities. While everyone who can do it, does, there is still a limit to what is acceptable, before it warrants aggression (Newman, 2020). As mentioned above, John Hulquist states that the stakes in this race against COVID-19 are too high to not take this crisis seriously. Thusly, although some malicious actors in the past have attacked hospitals, who were too overstretched or lacked the resources to prioritize cybersecurity, simply because they were easy targets, we see an increase in espionage activities conducted against healthcare institutions in response to the global pandemic. Compromising information this important could lead to swift retaliation, which brings us to the US and China.

Relations between the US and China are strained, as evident through the F-35 fighter jet allegations, as well as the indictment of four Chinese officers last year (BBC, 2020). With these publicly announced allegations, it would appear that the US has a few goals in mind; first is legislative justification. According to the NY Times, directly naming China as the perpetrator is part of a broader deterrent strategy that involves US Cyber Command and the National Security Agency (NSA). Per legal authorities issued by President Trump, these entities, “have the power to bore deeply into Chinese and other networks to mount proportional counterattacks” (Sanger & Perlroth, 2020). Second is an attempt to foster nationwide, nationalist mindsets against China, similar to the Cold War and the Soviet Union. While some examples, including those not listed here, have been walked back, pushed back, or otherwise received poorly by the general public, they nonetheless occurred. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, stated that there is “enormous evidence” that COVID-19 was created by a Chinese lab in Wuhan (Sanger & Perlroth, 2020). Christopher Krebs, CISA director, stated that, “China’s long history of bad behavior in cyberspace is well documented, so it shouldn’t surprise anyone they are going after the critical organizations involved in the nation’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic” (Sanger & Perlroth, 2020).  FBI officials have presented largely unclassified briefings at major universities about the threat of spies (Sanger & Perlroth, 2020). Lastly, the joint statement itself indicates that China’s espionage is compromising COVID-19 research and vaccine development, essentially stating that their actions are leading to the deaths of Americans.