The Chinese Embassy in Manila has slammed the allegations that the foiled cyberattacks that targeted certain government agencies’ websites and email systems by hackers in China were connected to the maritime dispute between the Philippines and China.

“Some Filipino officials and media maliciously speculated about and groundlessly accused China of engaging in cyber-attacks against the Philippines, even went as far as connecting these cyber attacks with the South China Sea disputes,” the embassy said in a statement late Monday.

“Such remarks are highly irresponsible,” it added.

The embassy was asked about their reaction to the statement made by Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Jay Tarriela regarding the reported attempt to hack the PCG website.

Tarriela said he does not rule out the possibility that the hacking attempt could be related to the South China Sea issue.

Over the weekend, the Department of Information and Communications Technology bared that there were attempts by hackers from China to hack the website of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration, as well as the email system of the DICT itself.

The websites of the Philippine Coast Guard, the Department of Justice, the Cabinet Secretariat of the Philippines, and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s personal website, "https://pbbm.com.ph/," were among the other government entities that hackers targeted.

According to the embassy, the Chinese government “firmly opposes and cracks down on all forms of cyber-attack in accordance with law.”

“[It] allows no country or individual to engage in cyber-attack and other illegal activities on Chinese soil or using Chinese infrastructure,” it said.

“Cybersecurity is a global challenge that requires collective response from the international community. China calls on all countries to jointly safeguard cybersecurity through dialogue and cooperation,” it added.

Communications and Technology Undersecretary Jeffrey Ian Dy revealed that the abovementioned government websites were targeted by hackers believed to be operating in China.

Dy said the DICT team, with the help of the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center, was able to trace the IP address of the hackers.

Without further elaborating on the specific locations of hackers, he noted that the attackers were coming from “China Unicom.”

China Unicom or China United Network Communications Group is a Chinese state-owned telecommunications company.