London, Oct 23 The Communist regime in China with the help of a elite hacker community is building its cyber warfare capabilities and appears to be using a long-term computer attack campaign to collect US intelligence.

An independent study released by a congressional advisory panel found cases that suggested that China's elite hacker community has ties to Beijing, although there is no substantial proof.

The commission report details a cyber attack against a US company several years ago that appeared to either originate in or came through China and was similar to other incidents also believed to be connected to that country, The Telegraph reports.

The data from company's network was being sent to multiple computers in the US and overseas, according to an analysis done by the company over several days.

The report contends that the attackers targeted specific data, suggesting a very coordinated and sophisticated operation by people who had the expertise to use the high-tech information.

An Internet Protocol (IP) address located in China was used at times during the episode, the paper reports.

The Chinese Government is said to view such cyber prowess as critical for victory in future conflicts, similar to the priority on offensive cyber abilities stressed by some US officials.

Potential Chinese targets in the US would likely include Pentagon networks and databases to disrupt command and control communications, and possibly corrupt encrypted data, the report says. (ANI)