US Searches for Excuse to Expand “Cyber Army”

Published in Xinhua
(China) on 4 February 2013
by Zhang YiXuan (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Kim Wang. Edited by Natalie Clager.
The United States is claiming once again that it has suffered from a “Chinese hacking attack”. This time it is the New York Times that claims to have been “attacked”, as well as the Wall Street Journal, published by Dow Jones & Company.

This year there have been several “victims” of these alleged attacks, including Google, firearms suppliers, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and NASA. Last November the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, established by the United States Congress, even released an annual report claiming that China is “the most threatening actor in cyberspace”

However, such a flattering allegation of Chinese “hacking” seems questionable and ambiguous considering the evidence provided. This time, the New York Times and Dow Jones & Company's reasoning for the accusations remains the same as before – the IP address originating from the attack is located in China.

People who understand the basics of how networks work would know that hacking attacks are transnational and can be hidden; the location of an IP address alone is not enough to stand as sufficient evidence to confirm the hackers' identities, which have become common knowledge in the Internet world. The United States, which has always been in the forefront of technological development, is surely aware of this.

Associating these three hackers with China not only supports their Chinese “threat” theory in the cyber security realm, but also gives the U.S. justification to change their strategy towards China.

Considering China's recent economic surges, scientific advancements and rise in the technology, members of the American media and U.S. politicians have become increasingly sensitive and anxious, preferring to view the world through their own skewed lens and accuse China of “plagiarism” and “conspiracy”. Allegations of Chinese “hackers” not only please Americans and attract political attention, but also justifies imposing more technical restrictions on China.

It is also noteworthy to mention that in the midst of the Chinese “hacking” investigation, American network security forces began to grow rapidly. When the “New York Times” and Dow Jones & Company accused China mere days ago, their media simultaneously announced that network security forces in the United States had been expanded 5-fold. This convenient coincidence has led some international critics to speculate that these so-called Chinese “hacking” attacks are just an excuse for American politicians to lobby Congress into expanding their “cyber army”.

The United States has already proved itself the “the patron saint” of liberty on the internet. As their network implements more and more measures to prevent foreign interference, cyber army expansion and their actual military are also constantly advancing. And all along, the U.S. military, certain CEOs of high tech internet companies and politicians have been advocating for this Chinese threat theory.

Considering the widespread existence of spies and hackers on the internet, it is inevitable that national departments and corporate networks are likely to suffer attacks. Data indicates that China is one of the most frequently attacked victims of hacking; last December, 3,049 foreign IP addresses managed to get remote access to 11,295 Chinese websites. The majority of these IP addresses were from the United States. Americans managed to get remote access to 4,240 Chinese websites in total. Despite the substantial amount of attacks made from U.S. IP addresses, China does not make assumptions and hasty conclusions about the source of these attacks.

As a major power on the internet, China has laws specifically prohibiting hacking attacks in order to crack down on online hacking and has constructively improved international cooperation concerning global network security. Considering globalization and our digital age, information security has become an international issue dependent on global cooperation against hackers. Accusing countries with unwarranted slander and using double standards in managing internet security should not be characteristics of a responsible, powerful nation.


美国为“网军”扩编找借口
2013年02月04日 08:49:22
美国又在声称受到“中国黑客”攻击了。这回自称“中枪”的是《纽约时报》以及《华尔街日报》的出版商道琼斯公司。

  近年,号称遭到“中国黑客”攻击的美国“受害者”还真不少:谷歌、军火商、美国商会、美国宇航局……去年11月,美国国会下属的“美中经济与安全评估委员会”甚至发表年度报告称,中国已成网络世界最具威胁性的国家。

  然而,如此抬举“中国黑客”的美国,在证据提供上却始终显得含混而模糊。这回《纽约时报》与道琼斯公司的理由,依旧与以往的指摘大同小异——攻击源的IP地址在中国。

  稍懂点网络知识的人都知道,网络黑客攻击具有跨国性和隐匿性,IP地址根本不足以成为确认黑客来源的充分证据,这已成为互联网的常识。对此,一直走在网络技术前沿的美国不会不知道。

  美国一而再、再而三地将“黑客”帽子扣向中国,无非是在网络领域渲染“中国威胁论”,为美国遏制中国战略提供新理由。国家安全已成为美国实行贸易保护、经济制裁最好的“遮羞布”,成为在全球范围内夸大中国威胁的终极理由。

  面对中国经济、科技的崛起,部分美国媒体和政客格外敏感,焦虑感增加,总喜欢戴着“有色眼镜”指责中国进行“剽窃”、“阴谋”。而炒作“中国黑客”,显然既能取悦国内民众、吸引政治关注,又能对中国施加更多技术限制。

  然而,一个值得注意的事实是,渲染“中国网络威胁”的同时,美国网络安全部队在迅速壮大。恰在《纽约时报》和道琼斯公司指责中国的前几天,媒体爆出美国将5倍扩编网络安全部队的消息。这种“巧合”和“有条不紊”,难免让一些国际观察人士推测——所谓“中国黑客”,大概又是美国政客游说国会扩编“网军”的新借口。

  事实已经证明,美国这个以“网络自由守护神”自居,却又将网络作为实施对外干涉与颠覆渗透的“利器”的国度,正不断加速推进网络军事化与实战化。而一直以来,美国军方、某些互联网高科技公司的高管以及部分政客,则是鼓吹“中国网络威胁论”的“急先锋”。

  互联网上,商业间谍、网络黑客大量存在,任何国家部门或企业都可能遭受网络攻击。数据表明,中国是世界上遭受网络攻击最多的国家之一,仅在2012年12月,就有境外3049个IP地址通过植入后门对境内11295个网站实施远程控制,其中位于美国的IP地址数量居首位,共向境内4240个网站植入了后门程序。尽管有相当数量的攻击从技术角度都指向美国网络,但中国却并未对攻击源作出简单推断和轻率结论。

  作为互联网大国,中国的法律明确禁止黑客攻击,严厉打击网上黑客行为,并一直以建设性姿态参与全球网络安全领域的交流合作。在经济全球化、信息化时代,信息安全已成为全球性问题,反制黑客离不开国际合作。无端污蔑指责他国,并在互联网管理上施行双重标准,不是负责任的大国所应有的作为。张意轩
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