Chinese state hackers infiltrated thousands of smart devices in the Netherlands

Chinese hackers have hacked into over 2,700 devices in the Netherlands as part of a global hack, the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) reported after warnings from the American and British authorities. The hackers are allegedly affiliated with the Chinese State and want to use the over 260,000 devices they hacked globally for large-scale cyber attacks.

“This concerns a wide variety of Small Office and Home Office (SOHO) equipment, such as internet modems, routers, and various Internet of Things (IoT) devices,” The NCSC said. “Where possible, owners of affected equipment will be notified, but this only concerns a portion of the total number of affected devices in the Netherlands.”

The NCSC urged Netherlands residents to make sure they’ve installed the latest updates on their SOHO equipment. “Equipment that is directly connected to the internet is unfortunately vulnerable to abuse. It is especially important to maintain good basic hygiene with these types of devices.”

The American FBI and British NSA, among others, warned that Chinese state hackers have broken into over 260,000 devices to use for major cyber attacks. According to the authorities, the hackers targeted routers, firewalls, and smart devices connected to the internet. This mainly involves devices in Europe, North America, and Asia, but also some in Africa, South America, and Australia.

The authorities linked the hack to the Beijing Integrity Technology Group, a listed cyber security company that allegedly has ties to the Chinese government. The hackers used the same techniques and methods as Chinese cyber spies, the authorities said.