WASHINGTON, Aug. 13 (UPI) -- The head of the House Intelligence Committee says cyber espionage is one of the greatest challenges facing U.S. intelligence agencies today.
Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., told retired U.S. intelligence officers in a speech Friday in Washington that Russia and China appear to be the major players in state-sponsored espionage, the Los Angeles Times reported. He said cyber spying is the biggest threat aside from al-Qaida and said intelligence agencies need the resources to combat it.
Rogers warned against making large cuts in the funding for U.S. intelligence agencies.
"Nation states are investing huge amounts of time, personnel and money to steal our data," Rogers said. "We are not as prepared as we need to be."
Rogers said reports on cyber espionage suggest Russian and Chinese military and intelligence agencies are involved.
While U.S. government agencies are generally quiet about cyber espionage, attacks have been reported by private security companies, Google and academic researchers.
