The Belgian government has accused the Chinese military of attempting to hack into its computer systems.

“The context of this affair and all the clues lead to China,” said justice minister Jo Vandeurzen, although he admitted there was no direct evidence that the attack had been backed by Chinese officials. It is also not known whether the attack was successful.

It has been suggested Belgium’s historical involvement in Central Africa might explain Chinese interest in its affairs. “There is an ongoing investigation, but I can tell you that we have more than mere suspicions [that this is the case],” one Belgian spokesperson told reporters.

Graham Cluley of security software vendor Sophos said the fact that Belgium is prepared to directly accuse China of spying was the most interesting element of the affair.

“It is unusual for a nation to accuse another of engaging in this activity,” he said, “especially when it can be extraordinarily difficult to prove an attack is being sponsored by a government or is a lone hacker acting independently.”

Further reading

The China security threat The threat that China poses to IT security is making Western business executives nervous

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