Chinese Hackers May Be Responsible for the Anthem Attack, Reports Say

Chinese hackers are the suspected perpetrators of the massive cyberattack on the American health insurer Anthem that was uncovered last month and resulted in the theft of sensitive information belonging to an estimated 80 million customers, according to reports in Bloomberg and the Washington Post.

Both news outlets say unnamed individuals familiar with the ongoing probe suggest the data theft might have links to state-sponsored hackers in China.

“Technical details of the attack include ‘fingerprints’ of a nation-state, according to two people familiar with the investigation, who said China is the early suspect,” says Bloomberg.

“Investigators suspect Chinese hackers may be responsible for the breach, according to an individual briefed on some aspects of the probe,” the Post says.

China has been implicated in several previous cyberattacks on U.S. organizations.