Italian Police Arrest Alleged Chinese Hacker Wanted by FBI

Shanghai Man Tied to Beijing-Backed Silk Typhoon Cyberespionage Attacks Mathew J. Schwartz (euroinfosec) • July 8, 2025

Italian police arrested a Chinese national accused of facilitating Beijing-backed nation-state hack attacks.

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Acting on a U.S. arrest warrant issued as part of an FBI investigation, Italian police arrested Xu Zewei, 33, resident of Shanghai, when he arrived last week at Milan's Malpensa airport, reported Italian newswire Ansa on Monday.

Xu is wanted by the FBI for working with a team of hackers tasked with conducting cyberespionage operations, including against researchers at the University of Texas who were developing novel coronavirus vaccines in 2020, Ansa reported (see: Chinese, North Korean Nation-State Groups ...