Red Lantern Analytica’s website was hacked today, and as per the evidence left by the attackers; we are certain that Chinese hackers acting on directives from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) were responsible for it. The attack left our website disfigured, with many articles in Chinese showing up on the home page. We have been constantly under threat from China, and our Twitter handle has also been blocked by Mr Lijian Zhao (Official Spokesperson & Deputy director of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Information Department).
The penetration and exploitation of our website’s server compromised the security and integrity of tens of thousands of computers and networks around the world, affecting those belonging to our website’s visitors and frequent readers. This reckless and dangerous behaviour jeopardised the safety of millions.
In addition, we have also identified malicious cyber activity with considerable effects aimed at our Facebook, Instagram, email accounts, and other social media handles. All of these destructive acts can be attributed to what we call the “50 Cent Army” group, which is backed by the Chinese Communist Party. The attacks were launched from China with the intent of stealing intellectual property and conducting espionage.
We vehemently condemn these hostile cyber actions, which violate the rules of responsible state behaviour accepted by all United Nations member states. We continue to urge the Chinese government to adhere to these rules, prohibit the use of its territory for malicious cyber activities and take all appropriate, available, and practicable measures to detect, investigate, and ensure that nothing of this sort happens in the future.
We reaffirm our unwavering dedication to responsible conduct in order to ensure a global, open, free, stable, and safe world. To this end, we will continue to pursue our objective of speaking out against China’s human rights violations, maritime and military muscle flexing, debt-trap diplomacy, and heavy-handed approach to criticism and dissent that frequently spans China’s geographical borders (like in our case).
We reaffirm our resolve to continue combating malicious Chinese operations. We will continue to improve our cooperation, including with international partners and other public and private stakeholders, by sharing more information and staying involved, strengthening cyber resilience and handling incidents together, and working together to make our website and social media handles more secure overall.
