Shannon Liao, writing for The Verge, has posted an interesting piece detailing an alleged Peoples Repbublic of China operation targeting United States Department of Defense data relevant to research at those universities (reportedly, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Washington {in Seattle, Washington} and University of Hawaii were listed as targeted institutions). Originally via Dustin Volz, writing for The Wall Street Journal (Paywall).

"The group has been given various nicknames by security researchers, like Temp.Periscope, Mudcarp, or Leviathan. Its connection to the Chinese government is unclear, but because the group appears to be targeting US military data, analysts believe the Chinese government is a likely sponsor. The same was reportedly behind the hacking of a US Navy contractor last June. " - via Shannon Liao, writing for The Verge