US Treasury says it was hacked by China

A Chinese-backed hacker breached the US Treasury Department’s systems, accessing staff and other unclassified documents, officials said Monday.

The breach occurred in early December and was announced in a letter written by the Treasury Department to lawmakers informing them of the incident.

In the letter, the Treasury Department said the Chinese player was able to bypass security through a key used by a third-party service provider that provides remote support to its employees.

The US agency called the breach a “major incident”, and said it had been working with the FBI and other agencies to investigate what happened.