Chinese underground cybercrime profits exceeded US$15.1 billion in 2017, while causing more than $13.3 billion worth of damage relating to data loss, identity theft and fraud. Over the years, Chinese non-state threat actor groups have gradually transformed from small local networks targeting mostly Chinese businesses or citizens to larger and well-organized criminal groups capable of hacking international organizations. The development of commercial-scale exploit toolkits and criminal networks that focus on monetization of malware have amplified the growing risks of cybercrime in the region to include a DDoS attack against the People’s Bank of China in December 2013, $1 billion SWIFT hack against Bangladesh Bank in February 2016, $14 million theft from Far Eastern International Bank in Taiwan in October 2017, to name just a few. How do the increased complexity and scope of attacks by Chinese non-state threat actors signal a new level of cyber threats emanating from China? How do Chinese cybercriminals compare to their Russian counterparts, and are they using a similar playbook? What is the impact on businesses in the Asia Pacific region and around the world? What new challenges do these developments pose against law enforcement agencies as they strive to detect, prevent, and mitigate cyberthreats?
Anne An is a senior security researcher at McAfee’s Advanced Programs Group (APG), where she leads threat analysis projects, performs qualitative research on advanced attacks and monitors cybercriminal threats in the Asia-Pacific region. Prior to joining McAfee, she held a variety of research positions at Intel Corporation, Dell SecureWorks, VeriSign iDefense (Accenture) and the Project 2049 Institute.