China has rejected an allegation by the United States that it is backing malicious cyber activity that targets the Pacific Islands.
The allegation came in a series of statements from the US Embassy in Suva, which claimed that “in the Pacific Islands region, the United States continues to observe state-sponsored cyber threat actors linked to China targeting foreign governments, multilateral organisations, and telecommunications networks”.
The US Embassy said that China remains an active and persistent cyber threat, and in a later post on X (formerly Twitter) said it recently informed Fiji’s government and a regional organisation based in Suva that the US had identified a suspected compromise of this organisation’s network between July and August 2026.
“Hackers with links to China maintained access to the organisation’s network over several days,” the embassy said.
It claimed that data stolen through this activity provides China’s intelligence services and malign actors access to sensitive information that compromises communications between Pacific Island countries and territories.
In response, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in New Zealand told RNZ Pacific that the claim was similar “disinformation” to what they had seen many previous times.
The spokesperson described the claim as politically motivated and aimed at sowing discord between China and countries in the region.
“China firmly opposes and combats hacking activities in accordance with [the] law. China also firmly opposes spreading disinformation for political agenda.
“It is no secret which country is the world’s largest ‘hacking empire’ and ‘eavesdropping empire’, with a blemished record and solid evidence to prove it.”
The spokesperson said cybersecurity is an issue of common concern for China and the US.
“We urge the US side to quit double standards and political manipulation, jointly tackle cybersecurity risks through equal-footed dialogue and consultation, and build a relationship characterized by peace, stability and mutual respect on cyber issues.”
Meanwhile, Fiji’s government said it was monitoring developments related to the reported cyberattack.
Ioane Naivalarua, the country’s Minister for Policing and Communications, has urged the government, non-governmental organisations and the private sector to “harden the security” of their digital platforms.
