Chinese gov't-affiliated hackers reportedly stole upwards of $20 million in US COVID relief benefits

The year is winding down, and even though there’s still some crazy stuff happening, chances are pretty decent that you’ve already kinda started to check out so you can just focus on the holidays and things that are good. And that’s totally understandable. And it’s important.

But it’s also important to not completely forget that there’s still a lot of stupid crap going on. Stupid crap like COVID fallout.

We’re quickly approaching the three-year mark of when the world went to hell in a hand basket, and there’s still stuff coming out about extremely shady and bad conduct from China:

NBC NEWS EXCLUSIVE:

Hackers linked to Chinese government stole millions in Covid benefits, Secret Service says.

Important reporting from ⁦@S_Fitzpatrick⁩ and ⁦@KitRamgopal⁩ https://t.co/SniJ2GPPyi

— Tom Winter (@Tom_Winter) December 5, 2022

This is fine. More from NBC News:

The theft of taxpayer funds by the Chengdu-based hacking group known as APT41 is the first instance of pandemic fraud tied to foreign, state-sponsored cybercriminals that the U.S. government has acknowledged publicly, but may just be the tip of the iceberg, according to U.S. law enforcement officials and cybersecurity experts.

The officials and experts, most speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject matter, say other federal investigations of pandemic fraud also seem to point back to foreign state-affiliated hackers.

“It would be crazy to think this group didn’t target all 50 states,” said Roy Dotson, national pandemic fraud recovery coordinator for the Secret Service, who also acts as a liaison to other federal agencies probing Covid fraud.

…

“I’ve never seen them target government money before,” said John Hultquist, the head of intelligence analysis at the cybersecurity firm Mandiant. “That would be an escalation.”

Why, yes. Yes it would be.

Color us shocked that the Chinese government would do something like this.

I am for one shocked https://t.co/mAwR0jfret

— Master Shake (@TheWinningEdge7) December 5, 2022

This is my shocked face. https://t.co/0YYiBANIh2

— Nathan Wurtzel (@NathanWurtzel) December 5, 2022

They seemed so above-board all this time!

https://t.co/KDlwP7qTLV pic.twitter.com/cRJhFY8Ucd

— Trey Mana (@treymanaa) December 5, 2022

We have to ask the U.S. government exactly what it is they do here. Because from where we’re sitting, they’re not doing a damn thing about China. At least not anything useful.

Which, of course, should come as great news to China, who now has even more proof that they can screw over and swindle the U.S. with impunity.

“Taxpayer money that should’ve went to taxpayers was stolen by Chinese hackers and congressional grift funds.”
Fify https://t.co/FSpnE3nxUl

— Andrew Young – TANSTAAFL Curmudgeon (@NucMM1retired) December 5, 2022

So basically American debt to China is due to China loaning us our own money? 🤔 https://t.co/Zif3TLkvn9

— Muffin Season (@No_BragginChas) December 5, 2022

That’s kinda what it sounds like, isn’t it?

4. Profit

— Richard Harambe (@Doc_Chimpanzee) December 5, 2022

Step 4 is the most important one.

"15 days to flatten the curve" 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙨…

never-ending lockdowns 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩…

force businesses to close 𝙩𝙝𝙪𝙨 𝙧𝙚𝙦𝙪𝙞𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜…

government relief 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩…

gets stolen by China.

So sad, yet so predictable. https://t.co/jsYX2OKcjh

— IT Guy (@ITGuy1959) December 5, 2022

Let’s all just take a moment to thank the man who helped make all of this possible: