reported According to BBC, Ukrinform.

FBI Director Christopher Wray said Wednesday that the agency is conducting an operation to shut down the Volt Typhoon group. He said the group hacked hundreds of old office routers to gain access to data on U.S. assets.

China is deliberately laying the groundwork to disable key U.S. infrastructure systems in the event of a conflict, the FBI chief said.

The FBI said the hackers targeted the nation’s critical infrastructure, including water purification systems, power grids, transportation systems, oil and gas pipelines and telecommunications networks. According to Ray, the group managed to install malware and compromise hundreds of old routers connected to these infrastructure facilities.

“The Volt Typhoon malware allowed China to conceal pre-operational intelligence and network activity against critical infrastructure, among other things,” he told a meeting of the House of Representatives special committee on China.

According to Ray, this shows that hackers are preparing to “wreak havoc and cause real harm to American citizens and communities.”

“If China decides it’s time to attack, they won’t just focus on political or military objectives,” he added.

Cybersecurity experts in the US have previously warned that China is targeting infrastructure to create a potential basis to disrupt communications in the event of a conflict.

The hacking activities of the Volt Typhoon group first became known in the United States last year, when Microsoft warned that the group was targeting various government facilities, including hacking government email inboxes.

US president, Ukrinform reported During a meeting with President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping in November, Joe Biden emphasized the need to avoid conflict between the two states.