Fake USB sticks spread China-linked virus in Japan’s army

Fake USB sticks used by the Japanese army spread a China-linked computer virus inside a secure network for nearly a year before they were found to contain malware, Japan’s Nikkei newspaper reported on Thursday.

The flash drives were delivered to Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force during disaster relief operations in March 2024 following an earthquake in central Japan, the paper said, citing internal army documents. The infection was not discovered until February 2025, when a Japanese soldier in Itami, near Osaka, reported that a computer was operating slowly.

A scan revealed that it had been infected by a virus carried on a compromised flash drive previously linked to a Chinese hacker group, the Nikkei said. The malware infects the computer as soon as the USB drive is inserted.

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