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China denies hacking into F-35 data

BEIJING — China denied media reports that hackers in the country breached a U.S. jet fighter program two years ago, calling the allegations “irresponsible” and “made up.”

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said Thursday that China was resolutely opposed to and has cracked down on cyber crimes, including hacking.

The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the breach, cited unnamed former U.S. officials as saying the attacks appeared to have originated in China.

A senior U.S. defense official in Washington earlier this week confirmed that hackers nearly two years ago breached a high-tech F-35 jet fighter program developed for the Pentagon by Lockheed Martin Corp., but said it was unclear who did it and that classified information was not compromised.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the issue, also said it was unclear whether the attack was an attempt at corporate thievery or a hacker trying to harm the program. The Pentagon is expected to pay about $300 billion to buy nearly 2,500 of the F-35 jets for the Air Force, Navy and Marines.

“Some people keep making up stories. I don’t know what their intention is,” Jiang said at a regular briefing when asked to comment on the reports. “We believe that without the results of any investigation, it would be irresponsible to make accusations against China.”

U.S. computer networks, including those at the Pentagon and other federal agencies, are under persistent attack, ranging from nuisance hacking to more nefarious assaults, possibly from other nations.

Officials in the U.S., Britain and Germany have accused Chinese hackers backed by the country’s military of intruding into their government and defense computer networks.

Chinese government officials have denied accusations of computer espionage, saying they were meant to feed anxiety over Beijing’s growing influence.

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