Chinese National Pleads Guilty In US Defense Contractor Hacking Case

A Chinese citizen, Su Bin, 50, has pleaded guilty in US District Court for his involvement in hacking US defense contractors’ computer networks and stealing sensitive data for sale in China.

In the plea agreement filed in the Court of the Central District of California last week, Su, aka Stephen Su and Stephen Subin, confessed to conspiring with two people in China, illegally accessing sensitive information relating to military aircraft, and transferring that to China for financial gain. A 2014 criminal complaint filed against Su Bin describes him as a Chinese businessman in the aviation and aerospace fields. He was charged with conspiring to steal technical data related to US military C-17 strategic transport aircraft and fighter jets.

Su had been arrested in Canada in July 2014, and later consented to sent to the US in February 2016 for the case.

“This plea sends a strong message that stealing from the United States and our companies has a significant cost; we can and will find these criminals and bring them to justice. The National Security Division remains sharply focused on disrupting cyber threats to the national security, and we will continue to be relentless in our pursuit of those who seek to undermine our security,” said US Assistant Attorney General Carlin.

Su Bin will face a maximum of sentence of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000, or double the total profit or loss resulting from the offense, whichever is more. His sentencing is scheduled for July 13, 2016.

For more from the US Department of Justice, see this release.