China denies hacking into Pentagon

China denied that its army had hacked into the Pentagon's computer network earlier this year, the Financial Times reported. The foreign ministry said the accusations were "absurd" and represented "Cold War thinking." The newspaper had earlier reported that the People's Liberation Army had infiltrated an unclassified network serving the office of the US defense secretary, Robert Gates. The Pentagon is investigating the security breach. US officials have expressed concern over China's growing ability to mount cyber attacks. The People's Liberation Army was accused of breaking into German government networks in August, just before German chancellor Angela Merkel visited China. She raised the issue with Premier Wen Jiabao, who pledged to stop renegade Chinese hackers.