Concern Mounts Over China’s Strategic Cyber Positioning

Chinese state-sponsored cyber actors have become a central concern for cybersecurity experts, as reports detail their increasingly aggressive campaigns targeting critical infrastructure in the U.S. and allied nations. According to recent findings from Dark Reading and Infosecurity Magazine, groups such as Volt Typhoon are conducting sustained cyber-espionage operations with notable precision, exploiting vulnerabilities in devices often overlooked by traditional endpoint detection and response (EDR) systems. Sandra Joyce, vice president of Google’s Threat Intelligence Group, pointed out that these actors are capitalizing on EDR blind spots—targeting firewalls, routers, and edge devices where telemetry is minimal. These efforts are not isolated, with data from Armis Labs showing that 79% of U.S. IT decision-makers see China as the most significant cybersecurity threat.

The issue is compounded by a shift in China’s operational strategy. Previously, attribution relied on tracking actor-controlled infrastructure, but Chinese APTs now rent infrastructure that rotates every 30 days, reducing detection windows. These groups also begin attacks with commodity malware before escalating to advanced toolsets. Experts warn that China is building strategic access within energy, water, and telecom systems, possibly to activate in a future conflict scenario for disruption. Joyce noted that although destructive attacks haven’t yet materialized, the foothold these actors have gained suggests the capability already exists. “Espionage is first and foremost China’s big lever to pull,” Joyce explained to Infosecurity Magazine.

To combat these evolving threats, experts argue for a broader security approach beyond EDR, emphasizing network analysis, identity protection, and the use of artificial intelligence for detection. Andrew Grealy of Armis Labs said outdated security models must be replaced with real-time intelligence and proactive threat hunting. AI adoption is already visible on both sides—Chinese actors are leveraging it for vulnerability discovery and influence operations, while defenders are turning to AI-powered systems to close security gaps. Ultimately, organizations are urged to unify data from EDR, networks, and identity systems to fully understand and mitigate threats, especially as China's tactics grow more covert and scalable.