A defense lawyer confirmed Xu Zewei’s extradition to the United States, raising questions about evidence and Beijing’s objections as federal courts prepare a high profile cybercrime trial.
The extradition of the man accused of carrying out cyberattacks on behalf of the Chinese government to the United States has been confirmed by his defense attorney.
In the 2023 case, the U.S. Department of Justice charged Xu Zewei and his co-conspirator Zhang Yu with working for a Chinese state entity to carry out a series of cyberattacks. According to the indictment, in late 2019 to early 2020 they targeted several American universities to steal research related to the COVID-19 pandemic. They also allegedly breached thousands of Microsoft Exchange email servers starting in March 2021 as part of a campaign attributed to the Hafnium hacking group, later known as Silk Typhoon.
Xu Zewei was arrested in Italy last year at the request of the United States. His Italian lawyer Simona Candido said that the extradition took place on Saturday, and he is now in custody in Houston, Texas.
According to the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons, a person by that name is in custody at the Federal Correctional Center in Houston.
Xu’s attorney in the United States, Dan Cogdell, was due to appear at a hearing in Houston; he said he had learned of the hearing earlier that day.
Angela Dodge, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas, which is handling Xu’s case, confirmed receiving the notice but did not respond to questions.
As noted in DOJ materials, at the time of the indictment Xu allegedly worked for Shanghai Powerock Network – a Chinese company which, prosecutors say, “conducted hacking activity” on behalf of Beijing. It is also alleged that Xu and other hackers reported their actions directly to Chinese government officials in Shanghai.
The Hafnium Hacker Group and Its Implications
Along with Zhang Yu, he belonged to the Hafnium group, which prosecutors say used previously undisclosed vulnerabilities in Microsoft Exchange servers to breach several American organizations, including defense contractors, law firms, think tanks, and infectious-disease researchers.
According to investigators, Hafnium targeted more than 60,000 objects in the United States, of which more than 12,700 were breached.
The Chinese Embassy in Washington did not respond to requests for comment.
“Fabrication of cases”
– The Financial Times
The Financial Times also reported that China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs opposed Xu’s extradition and accused the United States of “fabricating cases.”
For an extended period, the United States has leveled charges against Chinese hackers, many of whom remain at large. In 2022, Yanjun Xu was sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment for cyberfraud; law enforcement officials called it one of the first cases in which a Chinese government official was extradited to the United States.
This case underscores the long-standing tension between the United States and the People’s Republic of China in the realm of cybersecurity and the importance of international legal cooperation in the fight against cyber espionage.
In the ongoing development of the case, law enforcement and judicial authorities will continue to examine the details and implications of such actions, with a focus on strengthening global cybersecurity.
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