The Chinese military says hackers attacked two of its websites an average of 144,000 times per month last year, and that most of the attacks originated in the United States.
The statement by Beijing's Defense Ministry comes days after a U.S.-based Internet security company accused the People's Liberation Army of carrying out a prolonged campaign of international cyber attacks.
Chinese military spokesperson Geng Yansheng said the number of attacks on the Defense Ministry and China Military Online websites have "risen steadily" in the past years.
He said nearly 63 percent of the attacks on the websites in 2012 came from America, though he did not provide any further information on the source of the alleged attacks.
China has rejected last week's report by the Virginia-based Mandiant group that claims to have traced years of attacks on U.S. businesses and government organizations to a secretive division of the People's Liberation Army.
China has long been viewed as a major source of global hacking attempts. But Beijing insists it is the victim, not the perpetrator, of cyber crimes.
On Thursday, China's Defense Ministry also took aim at recent reports that Washington plans to expand its cyber warfare capabilities. He said these efforts would be unhelpful, and called for U.S. officials to "explain and clarify" the reports.
The statement by Beijing's Defense Ministry comes days after a U.S.-based Internet security company accused the People's Liberation Army of carrying out a prolonged campaign of international cyber attacks.
Chinese military spokesperson Geng Yansheng said the number of attacks on the Defense Ministry and China Military Online websites have "risen steadily" in the past years.
He said nearly 63 percent of the attacks on the websites in 2012 came from America, though he did not provide any further information on the source of the alleged attacks.
China has rejected last week's report by the Virginia-based Mandiant group that claims to have traced years of attacks on U.S. businesses and government organizations to a secretive division of the People's Liberation Army.
China has long been viewed as a major source of global hacking attempts. But Beijing insists it is the victim, not the perpetrator, of cyber crimes.
On Thursday, China's Defense Ministry also took aim at recent reports that Washington plans to expand its cyber warfare capabilities. He said these efforts would be unhelpful, and called for U.S. officials to "explain and clarify" the reports.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
