Alibaba fires back at allegations of assisting Chinese Military, labels it ‘malicious PR operation’
Chinese tech giant Alibaba has denied allegations that it is helping Beijing target the US, calling a recent media report “completely false”, AFP reports.
According to a White House memo cited by the Financial Times (FT) on Saturday, Alibaba reportedly provided technical support to China’s military operations against the United States.
What were the allegations against Alibaba?
The note stated that Alibaba provided customer data such as “IP addresses, WiFi details and payment records” to Chinese authorities and the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). However, the FT stated that it could not independently verify the allegations and stated that the White House evaluated the actions as a threat to US security.
What did Alibaba say?
Responding to the accusations, an Alibaba Group spokesman told AFP that “the allegations and insinuations in the article are completely false.”
In the report, the company called the memo “clearly a malicious public relations operation seeking to undermine President Trump’s recent trade deal with China.”
The conflict highlights ongoing tensions between Beijing and Washington, as both countries aim for technological dominance.
Trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies escalated after US President Donald Trump returned to the White House at the beginning of this year.
After months of imposing tariffs on each other, Trump and Xi Jinping reached a one-year ceasefire in late October.
Meanwhile, the spokesperson of China’s embassy in the USA also denied the allegations in the report.
“The Chinese government…will never require companies or individuals to collect or provide data located in foreign countries in violation of local laws,” Liu Pengyu wrote to X.
Concerns about espionage
The report also mentions growing concerns in the United States about the possible deployment of China’s advanced espionage technology.
California-based artificial intelligence company Anthropic said on Thursday that it had detected and thwarted the first recorded cyberespionage operation carried out primarily by autonomous artificial intelligence systems.
Anthropic said the activities were attributed to a “Chinese state-backed group” identified as GTG-1002.
Meanwhile, at a press conference on Friday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said he was “not familiar with the details” when asked about the report and also noted that Beijing has consistently opposed hacking activities.
