US director of national intelligence James Clapper said yesterday China was the top suspect in the massive hacking of a US government agency that compromised the personnel records of millions of federal employees.
Clapper's comments, first reported in The Wall Street Journal, marked the first time the Obama administration has publicly accused Beijing of the hacking attacks on the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).
"You have to kind of salute the Chinese for what they did," given the difficulty of the intrusion, the Journal quoted Clapper as saying at a Washington intelligence conference.
In a statement, Clapper's office confirmed he had identified China as a leading suspect, although it said the US government investigation was ongoing.
US officials have previously blamed the attacks on Chinese hackers, though not publicly. White House spokesperson Josh Earnest yesterday declined to comment on any potential suspects.
OPM director Katherine Archuleta told the Senate Homeland Security Committee on Thursday that personnel data of 4.2 million current and former federal employees was compromised in one security breach, and that another attack, targeting those applying for security clearances, had affected millions more.
Some media have reported as many as 18 million people in the US could have been affected.
Clapper's comments came a day after the conclusion of three days of high-level talks between China and the United States in Washington at which cyber security figured prominently.
US secretary of state John Kerry said on Wednesday there had been no US "finger-pointing" during the meetings about cyber theft "and whether or not it was actioned by government, or whether it was hackers, or individuals the government has the ability to prosecute".
Yet Kerry also said the US side had made "crystal clear" that cyber theft was unacceptable. He said the US believed there was a need to work with China to develop a "code of conduct" on state behaviour in cyber space and that China had agreed.
"It's something that we agreed needs to be addressed and hopefully it can be addressed soon," State Department spokesperson John Kirby said on Thursday.
Earnest cautioned against guessing at what response the US might take against those responsible for the attacks. "If there is a response, it's probably not one we are likely to telegraph in advance," he said.
The Journal cited Clapper as saying the US government and American companies would continue to be targets until policymakers addressed the "lack of deterrents".
Clapper said the absence of a US threat to respond to hacking attacks meant Washington had to put its focus instead on defence.
China has dismissed as "irresponsible and unscientific" any suggestion it was behind the hacking. China's top diplomat, state councillor Yang Jiechi, said after Wednesday's talks that the two countries should work together on cyber security.
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