<ul data-eligibleForWebStory="true"><li>A cyber espionage operation called LapDogs, reportedly linked to China-aligned threat actors, targeted devices in multiple countries including the US, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.</li><li>The operation involved hijacking SOHO routers and IoT devices, turning them into Operational Relay Boxes (ORBs) for extended surveillance.</li><li>The hackers used a custom backdoor named ShortLeash to gain root-level access and remain undetected in compromised devices, with some devices acting as gateways to infiltrate internal networks.</li><li>SecurityScorecard highlighted LapDogs' strategic and geo-targeted approach, emphasizing the challenge in detecting the malware due to the spoofing of legitimate security certificates.</li></ul>

China-backed "LapDogs" hackers hijacked hundreds of devices in an outlandish intel campaign aimed at US and Asian targets

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