Germany accused China on Wednesday of having been behind a 2021 cyberattack on the federal cartography agency for espionage purposes and summoned Beijing’s ambaassador to Berlin to lodge a complaint.

China’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“We call on China to refrain from, and to prevent, such cyberattacks,” Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said in a statement, adding that the incident had shown just how big a threat such attacks now posed.

The German government was able to attribute responsibility for the cyberattack to Chinese state actors based on information from its intelligence services, the ministry statement said.

The hackers compromised the end devices of private individuals and companies, it added.

Germany’s cartography and geodesy agency (BKG) plays an important role for multiple state and private organizations, including those involved in critical infrastructure, it said.

Security services expect China to further intensify its state-run espionage activities, the ministry said.

Tensions over Chinese espionage in Germany and other Western countries have increased in recent months, particularly after the high-profile arrest of a European Parliament aide in April.

“We are therefore resolutely countering these threats and have significantly increased our protection,” Faeser said.

(Reuters)