Reports from China indicate that the country's Ministry of State Security has accused the U.S. National Security Agency of attempting cyberattacks on the National Time Service Center (NTSC) located in Xi'an. The agency warned of potential consequences for critical sectors such as communications, energy, and defense, according to media reports.
According to Xinhua, the Chinese ministry noted that the NSA's attacks on the NTSC, which is responsible for establishing and disseminating "Beijing time," were systematic and long-term in nature. The center is also responsible for synchronization in many strategically important areas, such as transportation, geodesy, and defense.
According to Chinese authorities, the destruction of NTSC infrastructure could cause serious disruptions in financial systems, power supply, and transportation networks, as well as lead to chaos in the international time system.
Reports indicate that since March 25, 2022, the NSA has exploited a vulnerability in the SMS service of foreign mobile phones to access the devices of center employees and steal confidential information. Since April 18, 2023, the stolen accounts have been used to infiltrate NTSC's computer networks, allowing the U.S. to conduct covert surveillance of its activities.
The ministry also reported that from August 2023 to June 2024, the NSA deployed a new cyberwarfare strategy, using 42 specialized tools for high-intensity attacks on NTSC's internal networks, targeting the time synchronization system and aiming to paralyze it.
National security experts have determined that the attacks primarily occurred at night, with hackers using VPN services from the U.S., Europe, and Asia, as well as fake certificates and encryption methods to conceal their activities. China has tasked the NTSC with investigating and mitigating the consequences of these cyberattacks.
This is not the first time Beijing has accused Washington of cyberattacks on key facilities. Last summer, the China Cybersecurity Association reported that American hackers had breached Microsoft’s mail servers, granting access to data from important defense companies.
At the same time, Microsoft has repeatedly accused China of similar actions. In 2021, attacks by alleged Chinese hackers on tens of thousands of Microsoft Exchange accounts were recorded, and in 2023, they gained access to emails of American officials. Later, the U.S. acknowledged that these attacks were possible due to a "cascade of security failures" in Microsoft's infrastructure.
