Profiles of 4 cyberattackers related to 'Taiwan independence' forces disclosed

China's Ministry of State Security on Monday unveiled the identities of four senior members of the "Information, Communications and Electronic Force Command" of Taiwan that serves as the main force for the island's "Taiwan independence" separatist forces to carry out cyber operations against the Chinese mainland.

ICEFCOM, which was established in June 2017 and was restructured in 2022 as a direct agency of the "defense department" of the island, has been hiring social hackers and cybersecurity companies as external forces to carry out cyber warfare directives issued by the Democratic Progressive Party authorities engaging in cyber espionage and sabotage activities against the Chinese mainland, MSS said in a post on its official public WeChat account.

MSS posted the pictures, dates of birth and ID numbers of the four key members of ICEFCOM and warned them that "Taiwan independence" separatist activities are a path of no return and they are urged to abandon the illusion of "Taiwan independence" separatism, refuse to be pawns of "Taiwan independence" separatists, and cease online criminal activities of splitting the country.

The national security agencies will resolutely defend the country's sovereignty, security and development interests. All necessary punitive measures will be taken against the "Taiwan independence" separatist forces, and they will be held accountable for life in accordance with the law.

MSS said the common tactics of ICEFCOM's cyberattack forces include infiltrating key information infrastructure such as the Chinese mainland's water, electricity, gas, heat, communication and networked cameras. Also, they have targeted key units of the Party, government, military and enterprises by sending phishing emails and emails with contents against national reunification.

Meanwhile, they have gained control of network livestreaming platforms, networked electronic display screens, IP network intercom systems and portal websites by stealing login credentials. They then inserted videos and images, including content against national reunification on them, MSS said.

It added that they have been lurking on mainstream social media platforms and nurturing a large number of "bot" accounts. And then they opportunistically spread false information to manipulate public opinions, misleading the cognition of the residents of the Chinese mainland and the island as well as monitoring and suppressing dissenters within the island.

Since 2023, under the guise of organizations including "Anonymous 64", they have been spreading false information on social media platforms, actively promoting the DPP authorities' separatist agenda.

But such attacks with the extensive use of open-source tools can be easily caught by national security forces. And their security measures are so vulnerable, which is like "the emperor's new clothes". Recently, the national security agencies have traced and seized dozens of cyberattack platforms used by ICEFCOM, uncovering and foiling their attempts of attacking and stealing secrets in key sectors in the mainland, MSS said.

It also reminded internet service providers, operators and users to implement cybersecurity measures, timely update and upgrade systems, close technical vulnerabilities, enhance password strength, and strengthen inspections to prevent various cyberattacks from "Taiwan independence" separatists.