US media hypes 'cyber Cold War'

[InfoSec News <alerts () infosecnews org>]

http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90780/7681649.html

By Wang Tian
People's Daily
December 20, 2011

Edited and translated by People's Daily Online

A Dec. 14 report by Bloomberg claimed that the networks of at least 760 
companies, research universities, Internet service providers and 
government agencies in the United States have been hit by the same elite 
group of China-based cyber spies over the last decade.

The companies range from some of the largest corporations such as Google 
and Intel to niche innovators in sectors like aerospace, semiconductors, 
pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, according to intelligence data 
obtained by Bloomberg News.

The report said that China-based hackers might have used the networks of 
iBahn, a U.S.-based provider of Internet services to hotels, as a 
launching pad into corporate networks that are connected to it, in order 
to steal company secrets. Bloomberg called it the “Cyber Cold War” in 
the sensational report.

US accusations lack evidence

The Associated Press said in a recent report that most of the 
China-based cyber attacks stealing critical data from U.S. companies and 
government agencies were committed by 12 different hacker groups, 
largely “backed or directed by” the Chinese government, according to 
U.S. cyber security experts.

The Associated Press added that the “aggressive but stealthy attacks” by 
China-based hackers have stolen billions of dollars in U.S. intellectual 
property and data, and U.S. officials at times can tell where the 
hackers are and even who they may be according to certain “distinct 
signatures” of their attacks.

The article said U.S. intelligence officials alleged cyber attacks from 
China were escalating, but “it was difficult to provide” relevant 
“evidence.” The article also said U.S. government officials were 
reluctant to link these cyber attacks with the Chinese government 
directly, but privately officials and experts generally expressed that 
they believed the hackers were related to the Chinese government or 
military. Some American cyber-security experts criticized the U.S. 
government’s failure to put enough pressure on China to force it to 
trace hackers.

U.S. National Counterintelligence Executive Office opened a report 
submitted to Congress titled “Foreign Spies Stealing U.S. Economic 
Secrets in Cyberspace” on Nov. 3, alleging by name that China and Russia 
had stolen a lot of value U.S. economic secretes via the internet in the 
past two years, which has created “increasingly serious and persistent 
threat” to U.S. economic security.

China and Russia were “the most ambitious collectors” of U.S. economic 
information and technology, mainly targeting the U.S. economy’s key 
sectors, such as information and military technology, according to the 
report.

The report particularly alleged that China was “the world’s most active 
and most lasting economic espionage criminal” and “U.S. private 
companies and cyber-security experts have once reported computer network 
intrusion attacks from China” but “cannot confirm who should be 
responsible for that.”

The report predicted that what may be “stolen” in the future would 
possibly be information and communication technology; business 
information on scarce natural resource suppliers or important business 
information in U.S. enterprise and government negotiations; and military 
technology, particularly technologies in marine systems, unmanned aerial 
vehicles and other aerospace, civil or multi-purpose technology in clean 
energy and pharmaceutical sectors.

China also victim of overseas hacker attacks

Some people abroad are fond of making rumors about cyber espionage, but 
what they say is groundless, a spokesman with China’s foreign ministry 
said in response to the accusation.

The Chinese government opposes and forbids any kind of hacker attacks. 
It is expressly stipulated in China's laws that any related network 
crime would be investigated for criminal responsibilities in accordance 
with the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China.

China's vulnerable network is a victim of major overseas hacker attacks 
and is frequently subject to illegal hacking and attacks from certain 
countries. Ensuring information and network security is a common 
interest for all of the countries. China is committed to guarding 
information and network security together with the international 
community via mutually beneficial cooperation on an equal footing.

The spokesman also pointed out that there is another problem we should 
pay more attention to, i.e. certain countries are keen on improving 
their capabilities in the so-called cyber armament race. It has become a 
top priority for the international community to find a way to prevent 
the information and network space from turning into a new battleground, 
but to guard its peace and make it be truly used to promote social 
economic development and human welfare. The International Code on 
Information Security jointly proposed by China, Russia and other 
countries, aims to drive the international community to establish a 
peaceful, safe, fair and open information and network space.

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