The report by Mandiant identified a Shanghai based unit of the People's Liberation Army, as the most likely driving force behind the hacking.

 

　　Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hong Lei however says China firmly opposes hacking and doubts the evidence provided in the report.

 

　　"China has implemented relevant laws and regulations, and adopted strict enforcement measures to prevent hacking activities. China is also a victim of Internet hacking attacks."

 

　　He also said 14-hundred computers in China last year were being controlled by overseas IP addresses and have been turned into the so-called zombie computers used for attacks originating from the US itself.

 

　　Mandiant said it believed the unit had stolen data from over 140 organizations across a diverse set of industries beginning as early as 2006.

 

　　Most of the victims were located in the United States, with smaller numbers in Canada and Britain.

 

　　The report comes a week after U.S. President Barack Obama issued a long-awaited executive order aimed at getting the private owners of critical infrastructure to share data on attacks with officials and to begin following the latest security practices.

 

　　US media organizations, including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post have recently accused China of hacking their computers.