In an apparent cyber-espionage campaign in recent months, suspected state-sponsored Chinese hackers have targeted India’s power sector. This was stated in a report published by the intelligence agency Recorded Future Inc.
The hackers targeted at least seven load dispatch centers in northern India. In areas near the disputed India-China border in Ladakh, they focused on conducting real-time operations for grid control and power distribution.
One of the seven load dispatch centers previously targeted by Radeco. It was another hacking group.
According to Recorded Future, a hacking group called TAG-38 used a type of software called ShadowPad. It was previously affiliated with China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and the Ministry of State Security. Researchers could not identify the victims.
“The way the attackers infiltrated was very unusual,” said Jonathan Condra, senior manager at Recorded Futures. The equipment used was in South Korea and Taiwan.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not commented on this matter. Beijing has consistently denied involvement in malicious cyber activity.