It was in March 2017 that the two Chinese hackers attacked the Swedish company, according to the American indictment published earlier this week. "Victim 15" is described as a Swedish online gaming company and is one of 25 unnamed examples of the hundreds of victims who according to the indictment have been affected. 

The hackers "stole approximately 169 gigabytes of data concerning, among other things, development code for Offer 15's products, developer codes and certificates, username and password and code linked to upgrades in the game", the indictment states.

Stated to be worth billions

According to the indictment, the two allegedly hacked both for their own gain and on behalf of the Chinese intelligence service. The value of the stolen information is said to amount to several billion Swedish kronor.

Among the targets described are companies in the arms industry, software development and pharmaceutical companies. In the past, they have also attacked human rights activists.

"More recently, they explored the vulnerabilities in the networks of biotechnology companies and other companies that are widely known to work with Covid-19 vaccines, treatments and sampling technology," the indictment states.

Whether they actually managed to steal information about coronavirus research is not clear.

Säpo is aware of the prosecution

SVT has sought the US Department of Justice, which declines to comment further on the indictment. Svenska Säpo says it is aware of the prosecution but otherwise refers back to US authorities. More generally, however, the Security Police say they see an increasing threat of intelligence from the Chinese side.

- China has an intention and an ability to weaken Sweden's power of action. The Chinese intelligence threat has both been broadened and deepened and includes, among other things, cyber espionage, says press secretary Gabriel Wernstedt.

The New York Times has asked the Chinese embassy in the United States for comment. A spokeswoman for the embassy refers to previous statements by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, which emphasize that China is against all types of cyber attacks and threats. The newspaper notes that a lawsuit is unlikely because China has no extradition agreement with the United States.