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Hacker who allegedly carried out cyberattacks for China is extradited to U.S.

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A man accused of carrying out cyberattacks on behalf of the Chinese government has been extradited to the United States, according to his lawyer. 

Last year, the U.S. Justice Department accused Xu Zewei of working as a contractor for the Chinese Ministry of State Security to conduct a series of cyberattacks. Prosecutors alleged Xu and co-conspirator Zhang Yu targeted several U.S. universities in early 2020 to steal research related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The two also allegedly hacked thousands of email servers running Microsoft Exchange beginning March 2021, as part of an “indiscriminate” campaign attributed to a Chinese-backed hacking group known as Hafnium, and later Silk Typhoon.

Xu was arrested in Italy last year at the request of U.S. authorities. His lawyer in Italy, Simona Candido, told TechCrunch that Xu was extradited to the United States on Saturday, and that he is now in detention in Houston, Texas. 

According to the U.S. Bureau of Prison’s website, a man with the same name is in custody at the Federal Detention Center in Houston. 

Xu’s lawyer in the United States, Dan Cogdell, was scheduled to appear at a hearing in Houston on Monday, according to court records. Cogdell told TechCrunch that he found out about the hearing earlier on Monday. 

Angela Dodge, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of Texas, which is prosecuting Xu’s case, acknowledged receipt of an email but did not immediately respond to TechCrunch’s questions about Xu.

As the Justice Department said when it initially announced charges against the accused hackers, Xu allegedly worked for Shanghai Powerock Network, a company in China that prosecutors said “conducted hacking” for Beijing. Xu and other hackers allegedly reported their activities directly to Chinese state officials in Shanghai.

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Along with Zhang, he was part of the Hafnium group that allegedly took advantage of previously undiscovered security flaws in Microsoft Exchange servers with the aim of hacking into several American organizations, including defense contractors, law firms, think tanks, and infectious disease researchers. 

According to prosecutors, Hafnium hackers targeted more than 60,000 entities in the U.S. and were successful in hacking more than 12,700 of them. 

The Chinese Embassy in Washington D.C. did not respond to a request for comment.  

The Financial Times reported that the Chinese Foreign Ministry opposed Xu’s extradition and accused the U.S. government of “fabricating cases.” 

For years, the U.S. government has charged suspected Chinese hackers, many of whom remain at large. In 2022, Yanjun Xu was sentenced to 20 years in prison for hacking crimes in what the DOJ said was the first case where a Chinese government intelligence officer had been extradited to the United States. 

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2027: Anambra govt threatened by Peter Obi’s popularity – NDC

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The Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, Director of New Media and Strategic Communications, Theo Abu Agada on Monday insisted that the Anambra State Government is threatened by the growing popularity of the party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi.

Agada said the NDC would win big in Anambra State and that there is nothing Governor Chukwuma Soludo and his All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) can do about it.

He was reacting to a post on X by @AnambraNewMedia, which said a vote for Obi would be a betrayal of the state.

The post reads: “A betrayal alert for Ndi Anambra. Do not be deceived by a man who abandoned his own house.

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“Ndi APGA, defend your home. Resist the NDC. A vote for Peter Obi and NDC is a vote to kill APGA. Since 2014, Obi has had one mission: to destroy the party that made him.”

Reacting, Agada accused the state government of resorting to cheap blackmail because it could not challenge Obi on his governance record.

He wrote: “It is now clear, even to the blind, that the Anambra State Government is threatened by the growing popularity of our presidential candidate, H.E. Peter Obi, and the NDC in Anambra State and beyond.

“I understand this mad obsession. The NDC is going to win big in Anambra, and there is nothing Soludo and his minions in APGA can do about it.

“Since they cannot challenge H.E. Peter Obi on his governance record, they have resorted to cheap blackmail.”

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SSA Adeboye’s Media Aide Jide-Ojo Joins African Leaders for Sport Business Summit in Nairobi

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Jide-Ojo Jide Olusola, SA Media to the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Grassroots Sports Development, Hon. Adeboye Anthony Adeyinka, has been named among the speakers for the Year of Return Africa (YORA) Summit & Expo 2026 holding in Nairobi, Kenya.

Jide-Ojo, Founder/CEO of 247SportsNetwork Limited, publishers of Sports247.ng, will join leading African business executives, investors, innovators and industry stakeholders at the summit scheduled for October 13–14 at Broadwalk Mall, Westlands, Nairobi.

The veteran media executive, who has accumulated over 30 years of experience in the media industry, will participate in the summit’s sport business segment on October 14, bringing perspectives from sports journalism, grassroots development, strategic communications, partnerships and the commercialisation of African sport.

Jide-Ojo joins a diverse speakers’ lineup that includes Blue Mahoe Capital Chairman and CEO David Mullings, Kenya Film Commission Board Chairman Sudi Wandabusi, Capital Markets Authority Blockchain and Fintech Analyst James Hillary Obonyo, Emmppek Group Chairman Emmanuel Audu-Ohwavborua, and B|E Strategy Founder and Chief Strategist Charles Ellison, among others.

The summit, themed “Fueling the Future: Unlocking Africa’s Entrepreneurial Potential,” will examine investment, innovation, technology, entrepreneurship and opportunities within Africa’s creative economy.

A major focus of the sport business conversation will be the monetisation of Africa’s sports, media and entertainment industry, including how the continent can transform its enormous sporting talent, passionate audiences and compelling stories into sustainable commercial opportunities.

Through Sports247 and his current media role supporting the Presidency’s grassroots sports development agenda, Jide-Ojo has consistently promoted emerging athletes, grassroots competitions and initiatives aimed at creating greater visibility and opportunities within Nigeria’s sports ecosystem.

His contribution in Nairobi is expected to highlight the increasingly important role of media, digital storytelling, athlete branding, sponsorship and strategic partnerships in building commercially sustainable African sports properties.

The Nairobi platform will also provide an opportunity to share Nigeria’s grassroots sports experience while strengthening connections between sport, media, investment and business across Africa.

Following the Nairobi programme, YORA activities will continue in Kilifi, Kenya, from October 16–17.

YORA Summit & EXPO Kenya, 2026 is a three-day event including YORA Awards taking place from  12th – 17th Nairobi | Kilifi, Kenya

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