China Expands Cyberspying In US, Report Says 186
An anonymous reader writes "A new report published by The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission wags a finger at the People's Republic of China for conducting Internet-borne espionage operations against United States high-tech companies. The paper, written by defense giant Northrop Grumman, provides a detailed case study of one such intrusion that moved large volumes of sensitive tech data out of a US firm in 2007. From a Wall Street Journal article, '"The case study is absolutely clearly controlled and directed with a specific purpose to get at defense technology in a related group of companies," said Larry Wortzel, vice chairman of the commission and a former U.S. Army attaché in China. "There's no doubt that that's state-controlled."' Wang Baodong, a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, criticized the commission as "a product of Cold War mentality" that was "put in place to pick China to pieces." He added: "Accusations of China conducting, or 'likely conducting' as the commission's report indicates, cyberspace attacks or espionage against the US are unfounded and unwarranted.'"
there's a nice layer of deniability here (Score:5, Interesting)
the chinese hackers doing this are mostly motivated by ultranationalist impulses. they are self-starting, they are not command and control from the central government. if they discover any informational gems, the desire to report this to the government is also completely voluntary and desirable from an individual nationalistic point of view. if useful enough, such hackers can be brought into the fold and become a genuine command and control tool of the government, but this is at the late stage of things
of course, by completely controlling media, the government is creating a population of robots who aren't thinking critically and are ultranationalist only by default
luckily, tribalism is never stronger than principles in terms of motivations that win over others on the global stage. chinese censorship is creating a generation of cottonheads in its youth, unable to see the wider world for what it is. youth from countries with open and transparent media, and without hermetically sealed censorship of the level china employs, are meanwhile more globalistic and principled in their attitudes, rather than tribal. of course nationalistic, tribal thinking exists in all countries. but only in places like china and iran, who feel the need to control the media, does the nationalism rise to the level of blind passion: these minds simply aren't exposed to other opinions
so china has developed a wonderful machine for keeping china safe and secure from the outside. but as china begins to emerge as a player on the world stage, it is going to have to think on the world stage, not simply react from the point of view a cloistered hermit kingdom that imagines itself walled off from the wider world and its concerns
china will never lead in this world as long as it breeds children who can't think about anything except china. critical thinking only comes from exposure to alternative opinions and points of view. the chinese are raising their children to have no criticla thinking skills, to be blind cottonheaded nationalistic robots
Pleaseeeeeeee (Score:2, Interesting)
What an outrage! (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:Checking (Score:4, Interesting)
Of course the US is spying on China. What's amusing about this is that the Chinese government appears to think everyone else is complete simpering retards.
This happened at my company... (Score:5, Interesting)
I worked in Nuclear security, and a Chinese programmer before I was hired ran off with the source code to our nuclear security system and went back to China with it. It is happening.
Re:Let me be the first to say it: (Score:3, Interesting)
...
If Glenn Beck did NOT rape and kill a girl in 1990, let him address the claims and disprove them.
/sarcasm
You talk about problems with the Cold War mentality, but what you're addressing is just problems with nuclear weapons technology (MAD necessitating the need for war via proxy). The Cold War mentality that is being talked about is something different... it is about demonization of your economic and cultural rival, and polarization of the world political stage. You think the term is used too often... maybe it's because you're unclear on what is meant by use of the term?
Re:Checking (Score:3, Interesting)
Naw.... America is too busy spying on its own citizens to care even in the little bit that comes from abroad.
Of course, the same could be said about China. This inter-governmental spying is just the small stuff in the grand scheme of things. Both countries are far more paranoid about their own citizens than by anything another country could do.
Re:there's a nice layer of deniability here (Score:3, Interesting)
to be blind cottonheaded nationalistic robots
Who know how to handle a rifle and follow orders without question. Critical thinking may be indicative of greater cultural sophistication, but that didn't prevent Rome from being sacked by barbarians who, though lacking in culture, were handy with a sword.
Re:Checking (Score:3, Interesting)
The "People's Liberation Army" has an entire battalion that is dedicated to hacking "the West" and conducting electronic intelligence gathering via the internet. That most of these folks do their stuff in China is besides the point.... which by definition is "legal" as it is officially sanctioned by that government.
Of course the U.S. Air Force also has a similar team (I don't know how large of a unit) that does essentially the same thing on behalf of the U.S. Government.
Perhaps the original commentary is paranoia based upon actions of the U.S. government.... realizing that if they can screw somebody else, we must be getting screwed too. I'd call that fairly good proof.
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA (Score:3, Interesting)
"Most of the media is controlled by a handful of companies, and that is a fact."
we are reading and interacting on slashdot. which is not owned or run by megaultraevil corporation inc. it is one of thousands of independently run media outlets in the usa, which you are freely allowed to visit. right now, i can go read the news in tehran, or in beijing. if i were in beijing or tehran, i could not freely read the news in new york city. in china: there is only one media outlet. the government. you call my views simplistic. your views aren't simplistic: they are clearly falsehoods
"There is no real diversity of views, only minor ones."
translation: "i have some fringe wackjob belief i don't see getting the respect i think it deserves". because according to anyone levelheaded its not a belief that deserves much airtime, because it is easily dismissed, and is noncontroversial. but prove me wrong: go out and agitate for widespread support for your beliefs. you are free to try that, in the west (not in china). but if you can't get the support you think you deserve, is it because the people think you are nuts? or is it because some evilmegaultra corp is suppressing you?
"The Chinese state censors Western propaganda"
the chinese state censors its own people. for example, you are right now in the west, questioning the west. you are 100% allowed to do that and i support your right to do that. you are not allowed to question china, if you live in china. get the difference oh great wise one?
"where you get your idea of democracy, that you put as a condition to be a superpower."
yes, i believe that it is far superior to rule via consensus rather than force. it is not a condition for being a superpower, it is a condition for you to deserve respect as a government in my eyes. do you believe it is superior to rule via force than consensus?
"If China has showed us anything, is precisely that being a democracy is not a pre-condition to succeed on the world stage."
i never thought it was. the entirety of human history has shown brutality often rules. the chinese from their own history know that well: from mongol invasions to the opium wars, the chinese know they have to be strong to survive in this world. does it mean they shouldn't respect their own people and censor their own people's expression? why does beijing not respect its own people? i have more respect for chinese people and treat them like adults than beijing does, which treats its people like children
"BTW, how much "global international cooperation" did the US need to become a world super-power? Next to none."
the usa didn't exist 250 years ago. it rose to power dramatically over much older countries through the force of its ideas: a free market, rule via democracy rather than monarchy/ dictatorship. this has made it a strong stable country. its not a zero sum game: the usa did not take from someone else in order to be strong, the usa built its strength from within. the usa is not strong because of nike sweat shops in indonesia, or because it toppled the iranian govt, or assassinated chilean politicians. these were all stupid mistakes the usa committed. but none of those actions are reasons why the usa is strong. the usa is strong because of what its government and its people values. other countries that have been around a lot longer than the usa, who have committed just as many international crimes as the usa does (including china) are not as powerful as the usa, simply because they do not value free trade in capital and ideas like the usa does. china has learned to value capitalism. china is now more capitalistic than the usa, even though it is ruled by the communist party, which is some sort of laughable absurdity. if china next respects the free exchange of ideas like the usa, i will embrace china as readily as i embrace the usa. because i am not about tribalism, i am about principles
"Ultra-nationalism is a strength, not a weakness."
hi, nice to meet you fascist
"And it does not exclude c