Accused Chinese hacker claims mistaken identity - Asian Tech Roundup

Plus: Shein files for Hong Kong listing

Welcome to Computing's weekly roundup of tech news in Asia. This time we look at the attempted extradition by the US of an alleged Chinese hacker of vaccine secrets who was arrested in Italy last week, and fast-fashion ecommerce company Shein’s plans to go public.

A Chinese man arrested in Milan on the suspicion of being a hacker for a cyber-espionage group known as Silk Typhoon and Hafnium has claimed he's a victim of mistaken identity. Xu Zewei was arrested at the request of the US, authorities, who have indicted the 33-year-old IT manager on nine counts of computer intrusion in 2020 and 2021. The case relates to an alleged attempted theft of vaccine information during the Covid pandemic. The US authorities are seeking Xu’s extradition, but his lawyers say the police have the wrong man, claiming he had his phone stolen in 2020 and that his surname is very common in China.

Shein has made moves to go public on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. They come after months of umm-ing and ah-ing from the London Stock Exchange after the fast-fashion giant, now based in Singapore, applied to IPO there, and may be an attempt to force the LSE into a decision.

Australia

• Qantas has admitted that the personal data of up to 5.7 million of the airlines past and present customers may now be in the hands of cyber-attackers. In many cases data is out of date, but some customers are being contacted if it is believed that their private, residential addresses and telephone numbers have been stolen. Source
• Telstra Group, Australia's largest telco, announced plans to cut 550 employees as part of an ongoing structural change programme. The decision follows 1,900 job cuts last year. Source

China

• Chinese national Xu Zewei was arrested in Milan for allegedly being linked to the state-sponsored Silk Typhoon hacking group. He claims mistaken identity. Source
• The state-backed Aero Engine Corporation of China has 3D printed a “micro turbojet engine,” which actually works and has been used in a test flight to 4,000 metres above sea level. Exactly what components were printed is unclear. Source
• Threat actor Salt Typhoon has been revealed by a leak to consist of several private hacking firms with clients including Chinese government agencies. Source
• Two Chinese satellites have docked together more than 20,000 miles above the Earth in what analysts believe is the first high-altitude attempt at orbital refuelling. It is presently unknown whether the refuelling succeeded, and China has yet to make an official statement. Source

India

• The Reuters World account on X became inaccessible in India for a day with users seeing a message saying it had “been withheld in [India] in response to a legal demand.” Source
• After a three-year wait, Elon Musk owned Starlink has received a licence from India's space regulator to launch commercial operations in India. Source
• Google has launched its AI Mode feature in India, allowing users to ask questions of Gemini directly from the search page. Source
• Google also launched AI-powered advertising tools in India after the Indian government scrapped its 6% levy on digital ads to appease Trump. Source
• The state of Andhra Pradesh is launching an AI-powered Smart Mosquito Surveillance System using sensors, drones and other technology to detect mosquitoes’ species, gender and population density plus weather-related factors ahead of the monsoon season. Source
• Meta has given up on its ambitions to become a major fintech player in India, experts say. Source

Japan

• Japan is to conduct an experiment to extract rare earth elements (the vast majority of which currently come from China) from the deep ocean floor. However, scientists have warned that deep-sea mining poses a threat to marine ecosystems. Source
• Also at sea, shipping group Mitsui OSK Lines and UK-based energy and battery storage company Kinetics plan to develop what they claim will be the world's first floating datacentre platform. Source
• The Tokyo Stock Exchange is to offer a new AI powered search tool, allowing investors to sift through information on around 4,000 listed companies . Source

Singapore

• Ecommerce giant Shein, founded in China but now based in Singapore, has filed for an initial public offering in Hong Kong in a move seen as designed to pressure the UK regulator into approving a London IPO. Source
• China’s Tencent is taking legal action in an attempt to close FreeWeChat.com, a Singapore-based site operated by anti-censorship group GreatFire that archives and restores, we archive and restore censored articles from Tencent’s WeChat. Source

South Korea

• Samsung is anticipating a 56% drop in quarterly profits, blaming the poor results on US restrictions on advanced AI chips for China. But delays in supplying high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips to Nvidia are also a factor, according to analysts. Source
• Samsung is struggling to increase its chipmaking activities in the US, as demanded by the Trump administration, owing to a lack of customer demand. Source
• In more Samsung news, the company announced its acquisition of a US company Xealth, a platform which consolidates medical data and data from personal wearable devices. Source

Taiwan

• TSMC, the world’s largest chipmaker, is to postpone a planned construction of manufacturing facilities in Japan in favour of new factories in the US. Source
• TMSC reported Q2 revenue of T$933.80 billion ($31.9 billion), beating analyst forecasts and representing a year-on-year rise of 38.6%.

Vietnam

• State-backed Abu Dhabi firm G42 is in discussions with the Vietnamese authorities to build a $2 billion datacentre in Ho Chi Minh City. Source
• US president Trump claims (via a social media post) to have reached a new trade deal with Vietnam, reducing import tariffs from 46% to 20%. However, trans-shipped goods (those shipped to Vietnam and then passing on to their final destination - a method Chinese companies have been using to circumvent tariffs) will still be subject to a 40% rate. Source

Elsewhere in Asia

• Pakistan: YouTube has told more than two dozen critics of the Pakistani government, including that of the main opposition leader and journalists that it is considering blocking their channels after a local court sought to ban them for being "anti-state". Source