Arrested intruder says China trying to hack defence ministry websites: Official

PTI, Jun 23, 2021, 11:51 AM IST

Image Source: BSF

Kolkata: The Chinese national who was arrested recently in West Bengal’s Malda district informed his interrogators that several agencies of his country are trying to hack various websites of the central government including those under the Ministry of Defence, sources in the Special Task Force (STF) probing his case said on Tuesday.

They have targeted a Bengaluru-based company which is associated with the ministry and the BSNL, Han Junwe who was intercepted while trying to illegally enter the country through the India-Bangladesh border has told the sleuths.

A couple of aerospace companies are also among the targets of the agencies, an STF officer told PTI on condition of anonymity.

“He has said that the Chinese are trying to take a sneak-peek into India’s defence system and hence they are trying to hack the websites of the Indian Defence Ministry,” the officer said.

The STF is trying to find out Junwe’s connection with these agencies and the role he is playing in India, the officer said.

The sleuths are still trying to unlock the sophisticated mobile phone and the laptop seized from the Chinese national who was arrested on June 12.

“Where he was heading to is still not known. We suspect that someone was waiting somewhere to guide him to Kaliachak in Malda district,” the officer said.

The STF is also also trying to find out whether or not he had any connection with the banned Maoist outfits.

“He may have some role in providing financial assistance to the Maoists,” the IPS officer said.

The 35-year-old man believed to be a resident of Hubei in China was arrested by the BSF earlier this month.

The BSF had said on June 11 that Junwe told the investigators that he and his associates have smuggled as many as 1,300 Indian SIM cards into their country by hiding them in undergarments.

These SIM cards were allegedly used to hack accounts and carry out financial frauds.

The BSF had said that Junwe used the India-Bangladesh border to enter the country as he failed to get an Indian visa after his business partner Sun Jiang was arrested by the Lucknow Anti-Terrorism Squad in a case of fraud recently.