ROSAT satellite re-entry
ROSAT is expected to plunge back to Earth between Oct. 21 and Oct. 24. DLR

A report to be revealed next month says two U.S. government satellites were hijacked by hackers on four different occasions between 2007 and 2008, and China is suspected.

The report cites two interferences, the first in June 2007 and the second two months later, where hackers were thought to have gained entry for a total of 11 minutes. The report doesn't elaborate on exactly what happened but states that someone forced entry into the system.

It added: "The responsible party achieved all steps required to command the satellite," despite hackers not actually exercising any control over it.

They also reference an earth observation satellite that was commandeered for "12 minutes or longer" in October 2007 and July 2008.

The report states that the breaches are "consistent with China's military." Although there seems to be no direct proof, it states that China "conducted and supported a range of malicious cyber activities."

China