A Chinese group of hackers for hire are behind six major online attacks, security software firm Symantec has suggested.
The US company claims a covert group called Hidden Lynx, composed of 100 hackers, are responsible for attacks in America, Russia, Germany, Taiwan and even China itself.
Unlike other politically-motivated or mischievous hackers, Symantec believes Hidden Lynx carried out hacks for large amounts of money paid by clients hoping to gain an advantage in commercial deals or geopolitics.
"They steal on demand, whatever their clients are interested in, hence the wide variety and range of targets," Symantec wrote on its blog.
Its senior threat analyst, Gavin O’Gorman, told the Telegraph: "The clients could be governments or states, it could be other corporations.
"A lot of the targets are in financial industries, especially investment banks, so it could be that people are trying to get evidence when negotiating contracts."
Much of the software being used in the attacks originates from China, outlines Symantec’s research paper Hidden Lynx – Professional Hackers for Hire.
The company believes the group has the potential to become one of the world’s most notorious cyber security threats.
