U.S. theft of secrets is the biggest threat to global cybersecurity: Chinese FM spokeswoman

(ECNS) -- "According to an article by The New York Times, the U.S. government, through a front company, finalized a secret contract with NSO Group, an Israeli hacking firm, in 2021. Under the arrangement, NSO gave the U.S. government access to its geolocation tool Landmark, which can covertly track mobile phones around the world without the phone user’s knowledge or consent, " a reporter said at the regular press conference on Friday.

Sources say the U.S. has used Landmark to conduct thousands of queries in Mexico. However, President Biden signed an executive order further cracking down on the use of commercial spyware just last week, and some say the U.S. government's acts once again laid bare the hypocrisy of the US’s claim that it is a defender of global cybersecurity, the reporter added.

Asked what her comment is, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning pointed out that the latest revelation once again proves that the U.S.'s theft of secrets is the biggest threat to global cybersecurity.

The U.S. government, in an attempt to maintain its hegemony in cyberspace, knowingly abuses technology for cyber surveillance and theft of secrets under the cover of front companies and conducts indiscriminate surveillance and theft of secrets on other countries, including its allies, which seriously harms other countries’ sovereignty and the privacy of global internet users, she said. 

At the same time, the U.S. government frames the innocent and suppresses and sanctions foreign companies under the pretexts of national security and human rights without any evidence, she added.

The U.S. needs to reflect upon its practice, stop its global hacking operations, stop confounding public opinion with disinformation, and stop charging down the wrong and dangerous path, she said.