The wide web of nation-state hackers attacking the US Cybersecurity experts weigh in on what it means to be a nation-state hacker, as well as the activities and motivations of the 'big four' countries attacking the U.S. Share this item with your network: By Published: 20 Apr 2021 The threat of adversarial foreign governments using their hacking might to infiltrate and gather intelligence from the United States is a tale at least as old as the modern internet, but in recent years, nation-state hackers have been brought to the forefront of the cybersecurity industry's collective mind. In December, threat actors working on behalf of the Russian government conducted a supply chain attack against the software company SolarWinds, based in Austin, Texas. The attack compromised updates for the company's Orion IT management platform, and these updates, when released to its customers, ultimately compromised many organizations across the public and private sectors, including U.S. government agencies.