Cyberattacks targeting Taiwan’s government departments surged in 2024, with an average of 2.4 million attacks daily—double the 2023 figure, according to Taiwan’s National Security Bureau. The report highlighted that the majority of these attacks originated from Chinese cyber forces, escalating concerns about Beijing’s growing digital harassment.
The attacks were directed primarily at critical sectors, including telecommunications, transportation, and defense. Taiwan’s Government Service Network (GSN) bore the brunt, facing a significant increase from 1.2 million daily attacks in 2023 to 2.4 million in 2024. While many attempts were thwarted, the scale and frequency underscored the intensifying nature of these incursions.
China has consistently denied involvement in hacking activities, despite being a frequent target of accusations, including claims by the United States that Chinese hackers accessed sensitive U.S. Treasury documents. Taiwan’s report detailed how some attacks coincided with Chinese military drills around the island. Tactics such as distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks disrupted key institutions, including transportation and financial networks, amplifying the psychological and strategic pressure on Taipei.
Last year saw two major rounds of Chinese military exercises near Taiwan, codenamed Joint Sword – 2024A in May and 2024B in October. During these operations, Beijing’s cyber forces reportedly intensified their efforts, using advanced persistent threats, backdoor software, and social engineering to infiltrate Taiwan’s infrastructure and access sensitive government data.
Beyond disruption, these activities aimed to secure advantages across political, military, technological, and economic domains. Civil servants were also targeted through email breaches, reflecting a multi-pronged strategy to compromise Taiwan’s operations and bolster Beijing’s leverage.
Taiwan has long criticized what it describes as “grey-zone harassment” by China, ranging from cyberattacks to military drills and surveillance balloons. The latest data reaffirms Taiwan’s position that China’s tactics aim to destabilize the island while pressuring it to accept Beijing’s sovereignty claims.
Author’s Opinion
The alarming surge in cyberattacks on Taiwan underscores the evolving nature of modern warfare, where digital battlegrounds are as critical as physical ones. This escalation highlights not only Taiwan’s vulnerability but also the pressing need for international collaboration to deter state-sponsored cyber aggression. Without a united stance, such activities risk becoming normalized, threatening global stability and the integrity of critical infrastructure everywhere.
