US charges employee of Chinese aerospace giant with hacking Nasa, US military

An employee of one of China’s most powerful state-owned defence contractors tried to hack Nasa, the US military and other targets, according to an indictment announced on Monday by the US Attorney in Atlanta, Georgia.

Song Wu, a Chinese national, attempted to obtain computer software and source code from the space agency, the US Air Force, US Army and US Navy and the Federal Aviation Administration, according to a statement from the office of Ryan Buchanan, US Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia.

Song allegedly tried to hack individuals working at major research universities in Georgia and five other states as well as private-sector aerospace companies, according to the statement.

The United States is charging him with 14 counts of wire fraud and 14 counts of aggravated identity theft.

The statement identified Song as a 39-year-old who worked as an engineer for Aviation Industry Corporation of China, but did not indicate where he is based or if he has been arrested.