The Chinese military hacked into a Pentagon computer network in June in the most successful cyber attack on the US defence department, say American officials.
The Pentagon acknowledged shutting down part of a computer system serving the office of Robert Gates, defence secretary, but declined to say who it believed was behind the attack.
Current and former officials have told the Financial Times an internal investigation has revealed that the incursion came from the People’s Liberation Army.
One senior US official said the Pentagon had pinpointed the exact origins of the attack. Another person familiar with the event said there was a “very high level of confidence…trending towards total certainty” that the PLA was responsible. The defence ministry in Beijing declined to comment on Monday.
It seems they’ve done the same thing to the Germans, too, who have complained to China.
Meanwhile, the Chinese retort:
“We have explicit laws and regulations in this regard,” said Jiang Yu, from the ministry. “Hacking is a global issue and China is frequently a victim.”
However, the Times says that this is just business as usual:
The PLA regularly probes US military networks - and the Pentagon is widely assumed to scan Chinese networks - but US officials said the penetration in June raised concerns to a new level because of fears that China had shown it could disrupt systems at critical times.
The Financial Times has some interesting looking editorial comment behind the subscription wall. You can access it with a free trial. Look to the sidebar on the right.
Complaining to the Chinese is like pi**ing in the wind. Nothing but splash back.
Hat tip to John at Infidels are Cool.
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3 comments:
It will be a cold day in Hell when the Communist regime in China cares about anything but itself.
yes, dymphna,
but if you don't p*ss in the wind,
what are you gonna tell your grandchildren?
(sorry, but you reminded me of the song! couldn't resist...)
There is only one way to keep a network secure. No physical wires to the internet.
I friend of mine once plugged a printer into the wrong net in the Pentagon, the MP’s were there in four minutes. It took over fours to convince them it was and honest mistake.
The Chinese hacked into the network that hooks to the internet, embarssing and it should not happen. But the most valuable thing they probably got were down loaded “Gates" posts and "Day by Day" cartoons.
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