# Chinese hackers impersonated US officials and an Anthropic employee to target AI policy experts

Digest AI · Policy & Regulation · published 2026-09-30T13:00:00Z

Canonical: https://digestai.news/story/chinese-hackers-impersonated-us-officials-and-an-anthropic-employee-to

## Summary

Proofpoint identified a series of phishing campaigns that pretended to be senior U.S. officials and an Anthropic staffer to lure AI policy researchers. The spoofed identities included Lynne Parker, former principal deputy director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, and Heidi Crebo‑Rediker, the State Department’s first chief economist, as well as an unnamed senior Anthropic employee. The campaigns were linked to a group tracked as TA419, which Proofpoint describes as China‑aligned and supporting Beijing’s intelligence interests.

Recipients at think tanks, universities and law firms received invitations to join a fictitious “AI Policy Advisory Committee” or to contribute to a supposed Senate Foreign Relations Committee report on AI export controls. After replying, they were sent links to a counterfeit OneDrive page designed to capture Microsoft login credentials. The report does not disclose how many people were contacted, whether any accounts were compromised, or what information may have been exfiltrated. Parker confirmed the impersonation on July 9; Anthropic and Crebo‑Rediker did not comment.

## Key points

- Proofpoint traced phishing campaigns to China‑aligned group TA419 that spoofed former White House tech official Lynne Parker, former State Dept economist Heidi Crebo‑Rediker, and an Anthropic employee.
- Attackers sent fake OneDrive links to AI policy researchers at think tanks, universities and law firms, aiming to steal Microsoft credentials.
- The report did not state how many targets were contacted, nor confirm any successful account compromises.

## Why it matters

Compromising AI policy experts could expose sensitive discussions on AI regulation and military use, highlighting espionage risks in the global AI race.

## Sources

1. [China-linked hackers posed as former US officials, Anthropic employee to target AI experts](https://nextgov.com/cybersecurity/2026/10/china-linked-hackers-posed-former-us-officials-anthropic-employee-target-ai-experts/416356) (nextgov.com, 2026-09-30)

## Cite

Digest AI, "Chinese hackers impersonated US officials and an Anthropic employee to target AI policy experts", 30 September 2026, https://digestai.news/story/chinese-hackers-impersonated-us-officials-and-an-anthropic-employee-to

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