Chinese hackers attacked Forbes.com and used the site as part of an attack on the US defense and financial industry, according to cybersecurity researchers at iSIGHT Partners and Invincea.

For three days late last year, the news site's “Thought of the Day” widget, which appears when readers visit the site, was compromised — seamlessly redirecting visitors from certain organizations to another site where their computers could be infected with malware without their knowledge. Researches have linked similar malware controlled by the same server used in the Forbes attack to breaches of Web sites frequented by domestic Chinese dissident groups.