Data Leak Exposes Chinese State-Sponsored Cyber Arsenal and Target Database

In early November 2025, a massive data breach at Knownsec, a prominent Chinese cybersecurity firm with government ties, sent shockwaves through the international security community.

The incident, reported on November 2, resulted in the theft of over 12,000 classified documents exposing sophisticated state-sponsored cyber weapons, internal hacking tools, and a comprehensive global target list spanning multiple continents.

The breach represents one of the most significant exposures of state-level cyber operations in recent years. Hackers successfully exfiltrated thousands of confidential files that extended far beyond routine business documentation.

The leaked materials included technical specifications for cyber weapons, source code for proprietary hacking tools, operational details of government collaborations, and extensive lists of foreign surveillance targets.

Initially published on GitHub, the leaked documents spread rapidly throughout the cybersecurity research community before GitHub removed them for violating its terms of service. However, the damage was already done, with security ...