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5h ago

Hacker ‘FlamingChina’ Claims 10+ Petabyte Theft From China’s Tianjin Supercomputing Center

Researchers warn the trove could give rivals an unusual window into Chinese defense work.

The National Supercomputer Center building in Tianjin, China, on August 18, 2015
Employees work in front of supercomputers at The National Supercomputer Center in Jinan, China, on 17 October 2018.
Staff members walk past the Tianhe-1 supercomputer at the National Supercomputing Center in Tianjin, China, on November 2, 2010.
A security specialist

Overview

  • FlamingChina posted a sample on Telegram on February 6 and began selling access for cryptocurrency with previews priced in the thousands and full access in the hundreds of thousands.
  • Cybersecurity experts who reviewed the files said the material matches workloads from the National Supercomputing Center in Tianjin and appears credible.
  • The cache is alleged to exceed 10 petabytes and includes documents labeled secret in Chinese along with missile schematics, bomb designs, and animated weapons simulations.
  • The attacker reportedly used a compromised VPN entry point and a botnet to siphon data over about six months by spreading many small transfers to avoid detection.
  • The Tianjin center serves more than 6,000 clients across science, industry, and defense, and analysts note China has issued no confirmation as they assess the potential intelligence payoff for state services.