China could shut down US power grid: NSA chief

United States National Security Agency head has reportedly told a Congressional panel that China and "probably one or two other" countries have the ability to shut down the nation's power grid and other critical infrastructure via a cyber attack.

Admiral Michael Rogers, who also serves as the head of the U.S. Cyber Command, said on Thursday that the U.S. has detected malware from China infecting computer systems in the country and affecting the daily lives of every American, reported the BBC.

Rogers said that the malware allows hackers to shut down "segmented, tailored parts" of the infrastructure forestalling the ability to provide that service to citizens. He added that such attacks are part of the "coming trends" he sees based on the "reconnaissance" that nations may use to exploit vulnerabilities in American cyber systems.

The NSA chief said that the agency has seen the hackers attempting to steal information on how U.S. systems are configured, the schematics of the control systems, engineering details that will enable them to spot vulnerabilities among others.

Rogers said that other nations are also investing in these kinds of capabilities but refused to name them because of the classified nature of their identities.

A recent report by Mandiant, a cyber-security firm, had stated that hackers working on behalf of the Chinese government were penetrating American public utility systems that control everything from power generation, to the movement of water and fuel across the country.