US Manufacturer Wants Commerce Department to Penalize China for Cyberattack

A US solar panel manufacturer whose business secrets were allegedly stolen by Chinese computer hackers has asked the US government to investigate the matter, setting in motion a process that could see the United States impose trade penalties for the first time in response to state-sponsored cyber-espionage against an American company.

In a filing with the Commerce Department on July 1, the US subsidiary of German company SolarWorld, which builds solar panels and equipment, asked officials to investigate allegations contained in a recent criminal indictment accusing five members of the People's Liberation Army with hacking the company's computers and stealing proprietary information.

Prosecutors say that the hackers took SolarWorld's price lists, product designs, and communications between the company and its lawyers in a series of computer incursions that began in 2012. SolarWorld wants Commerce Department officials to question Chinese officials and request documents about Beijing's alleged cyberspying.