# Chinese hackers 'breach Australian media organisations' ahead of G20

**[abc.net.au/news/2014-11-13/g20-china-affliliated-hackers-breaches-australian-media/5889442](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-11-13/g20-china-affliliated-hackers-breaches-australian-media/5889442)**

Dylan Welch November 13, 2014

[7.30](https://www.abc.net.au/7.30/)
/
By [Dylan Welch](https://www.abc.net.au/news/dylan-welch/5572520)
Posted Thu 13 Nov 2014 at 7:23amThursday 13 Nov 2014 at 7:23amThu 13 Nov 2014 at
7:23am, updated Thu 13 Nov 2014 at 10:04amThursday 13 Nov 2014 at 10:04amThu 13
Nov 2014 at 10:04am

Chinese hackers are attempting to steal questions from reporters ahead of Xi Jinping's visit,
a cyber security expert says.(ABC 7.30)
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A Chinese hacking group believed to be affiliated with the Chinese government has
penetrated Australian media organisations ahead of this weekend's G20 meeting, a global
cyber security expert says.

"We started to see activity over the last couple of weeks targeting Australian media
organisations and we believe that's related to the G20," Dmitri Alperovitch, co-founder of US
computer security company CrowdStrike, told the ABC's 7.30 program.


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CrowdStrike has named the group Deep Panda .

It is the same group that was outed as sneaking into the networks of US foreign policy think
tanks at the height of the Iraq crisis in the middle of the year.

"[They] typically go after very strategic interests for the Chinese government," he said.

## Deep Panda and Vixen Panda

Now Deep Panda is targeting Australian media organisations in an attempt to understand the
domestic media climate when Chinese president Xi Jinping arrives.

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Chinese hackers plan a hack attack for the G20(Dylan Welch)
Mr Alperovitch said he could not name the media organisations targeted because of
confidentiality reasons.

"[They're looking for] questions they can expect from Australian reporters, what type of
coverage, positive or negative, they can expect to see," Mr Alperovitch said.

[They're looking for] questions they can expect from Australian reporters, what type of
coverage, positive or negative, they can expect to see.

Mr Alperovitch also identified another Chinese-government-linked hacking group, which he
said was responsible for attacks against commercial and government networks in Australia.

Called Vixen Panda, the group has a long track record in Australia.


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Out of all the groups that we track from China... Vixen Panda is the one with the most focus
on Australia," he said.

Based on his research, Mr Alperovitch said he believed Vixen Panda was actually a Beijingbased military unit within the People's Liberation Army's Third Department.

The Third Department, or 3PLA as it is known, is China's version of the US National Security
Agency (NSA) or the Australian Signals Directorate.

"You have a unit of the Chinese military conducting espionage against Australian
Government... and the information that they're stealing is being passed on through the
military chain to the leadership of the Chinese government," he said.

Posted 13 Nov 201413 Nov 2014Thu 13 Nov 2014 at 7:23am, updated 13 Nov 201413 Nov
2014Thu 13 Nov 2014 at 10:04am

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