Police investigate cyber-attack claim by US security firm

An IP address used in attacks allegedly originated from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

Hong Kong police are investigating the use of an IP address belonging to HKUST after college authorities reported suspicious activities on their servers following recent reports that hacker attacks on U.S. companies came from China.

The police said officers at its Cyber Security Center had already met with university officials to discuss the allegation.

The IP address was the only one traced to Hong Kong by security firm Mandiant that claims hackers based in China had broken into many U.S. corporate computer systems over the past years.

Mandiant traced a total of 613 IP addresses used in the cyber-attacks to a building it said belonged to the People's Liberation Army's cyber-division in Shanghai. The remaining IP address belonged to HKUST.

The university said it opposes any hijacking activities and is very concerned that its network has been attacked and used by hackers.

"A report has been lodged with the police while [an internal] investigation has been launched. We are serious about network safety," the university said in a statement.

China's defense ministry again rejected claims that the military was behind the hacker attacks, saying Mandiant's report lacked technical proof. Mandiant, however, said it was highly unlikely the Chinese government was unaware of the hacking attacks, and was possibly supporting the cyber-espionage.