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Milan Court Weighs Extradition of Chinese Hacker Xu Zewei

The Milan Court of Appeals will decide whether to extradite Xu Zewei to the United States following his claim of mistaken identity.

The seal of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on the J. Edgar Hoover Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) building in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025.
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Overview

  • Xu Zewei was arrested at Milan’s Malpensa Airport on July 3 at the request of U.S. authorities and is now before Italy’s Court of Appeals to determine his extradition.
  • He is accused of conducting China-directed cyberespionage under the Ministry of State Security, including targeting U.S. COVID-19 vaccine research in early 2020 and exploiting Microsoft Exchange vulnerabilities in the HAFNIUM campaign.
  • A nine-count indictment unsealed in the Southern District of Texas charges Xu and co-defendant Zhang Yu with conspiracy, wire fraud, identity theft and unauthorized access to protected computers.
  • Xu denies the allegations as a case of mistaken identity and has suggested that someone else may have used his accounts to carry out the intrusions.
  • His family insists he worked for Shanghai’s GTA Semiconductor rather than for state intelligence, and his lawyer plans to review U.S. evidence before requesting house arrest.