Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on May 28, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleThe Czech Republic accuses China of a cyberattack on its Foreign Ministry, blaming APT31. NATO and the EU support the Czech stance.
PRAGUE (Reuters) -The Czech Republic said on Wednesday China was responsible for a "malicious cyber campaign" targeting a network used for unclassified communication at the Foreign Affairs ministry, and summoned the Chinese ambassador to condemn the incident.
The attacks have been ongoing since 2022 and were perpetrated by the cyber espionage actor APT31, which the Czech Republic, an EU state and NATO member, said was publicly associated with the Chinese Ministry of State Security.
The Chinese embassy in Prague did not immediately respond to a request for comment. NATO and the European Union said they stood in solidarity with the Czech Republic.
Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said on X that after the attack was detected, the ministry implemented a new communications system with enhanced security.
"I summoned the Chinese ambassador to make clear that such hostile actions have serious consequences for our bilateral relations," he said.
"The Government of the Czech Republic strongly condemns this malicious cyber campaign against its critical infrastructure," the government said in a statement.
EU member states have increasingly been the target of cyber attacks from China in recent years and China should do more to prevent them, the European Union said on Wednesday.
"We call upon all states, including China, to refrain from such behaviour," she said. "States should not allow their territory to be used for malicious cyber activities," EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas in a statement.
(Reporting by Jan Lopatka and Alan CharlishEditing by Bernadette Baum)
The Czech Republic stated that China was responsible for a 'malicious cyber campaign' targeting its Foreign Affairs ministry.
Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky announced that the ministry implemented a new communications system with enhanced security after the attack was detected.
The European Union condemned the cyber attacks and called upon all states, including China, to refrain from such behavior and prevent their territory from being used for malicious cyber activities.
APT31 is identified as the cyber espionage actor responsible for the ongoing attacks since 2022, which the Czech Republic publicly associated with the Chinese Ministry.
The Government of the Czech Republic strongly condemned the malicious cyber campaign against its critical infrastructure, stating that such actions have serious consequences for bilateral relations.
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