US House panel opens probe into suspected Chinese hacking of Commerce, State emails

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives Oversight Committee said Wednesday it is opening an investigation into China's suspected involvement in recent breaches of Commerce and State department email systems.

Representative James Comer, who chairs the committee, and the heads of two subcommittees asked Commerce Secretary Raimondo and Secretary of State Antony Blinken for staff briefings by Aug. 9.

"We are also concerned that this attack on federal agencies, including the email account of a senior U.S. government official such as yourself, reflects a new level of skill and sophistication from China's hackers," the lawmakers wrote Raimondo.

(Reporting by David Shepardson; editing by Jonathan Oatis)