Google said Chinese hackers have managed to steal Gmail login details of 'hundreds' of US and South Korean government officials as well as journalists and Chinese activists in a sophisticated phishing trip.

On its blog, Goggle said it had uncovered a "campaign to collect user passwords, likely through phishing. The search giangs said t thinks the campaign originated in Jinan, China, and "affected what seem to be the personal Gmail accounts of hundreds of users including, among others, senior U.S. government officials, Chinese political activists, officials in several Asian countries (predominantly South Korea), military personnel and journalists."

Google said the attackers seemed to want to monitor the accounts rather than seeke to steal stuff, suggesting Chinese government involvement, rather than purely criminal intent

"Google detected and has disrupted this campaign to take users’ passwords and monitor their emails. We have notified victims and secured their accounts. In addition, we have notified relevant government authorities." the firm blogged.

The US recently threatened to bomb hackers, the UK is enlisting a cyber army to combat hackers and Nato wants to launch strikes on Anonymous.

In fact, it's clear the world has gone completely bananas.