The US Justice Department and the FBI on Monday said millions of Americans' online accounts have been caught up in a sinister Chinese hacking plot that targeted US officials.
Seven Chinese nationals have been charged with enacting a widespread cyber attack impacting thousands of victims across multiple continents, spanning 14 years.
The US state department announced a reward of up to $10 million for information on the seven men.
In an indictment setting out charges, US prosecutors said the hacking resulted in the confirmed or potential compromise of work accounts, personal emails, online storage and telephone call records.
The emails they are accused of sending often appeared to be from prominent news outlets or journalists, containing hidden tracking links.
If a person opened the email sent to them, their information - including their location and IP addresses - would be sent to a server allegedly controlled by the seven defendants.
This information was then used to enable more "direct and sophisticated targeted hacking, such as compromising the recipients' home routers and other electronic devices.
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