CHINA: Chinese Defence Ministry denies U.S. accusations of hacking attacks and says there are "unprofessional" claims
Record ID:
1372101
CHINA: Chinese Defence Ministry denies U.S. accusations of hacking attacks and says there are "unprofessional" claims
- Title: CHINA: Chinese Defence Ministry denies U.S. accusations of hacking attacks and says there are "unprofessional" claims
- Date: 20th February 2013
- Summary: BEIJING, CHINA (FEBRUARY 20, 2013) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF CHINESE DEFENCE MINISTRY CHINESE NATIONAL EMBLEM ENTRANCE TO DEFENCE MINISTRY BUILDING CHINESE NATIONAL FLAG FLYING BEIJING, CHINA (FEBRUARY 20, 2013) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY CHINESE NATIONAL FLAG FLYING CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN HONG LEI WALKING IN FOR REGULAR NEWS CONFERENCE JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN HONG LEI SAYING: "China and the U.S. have maintained communication over the relevant issue. Yesterday I have already said that on the issue of Internet hacking attacks, China has always emphasised that all countries should, on the basis of mutual respect and mutual trust, engage in constructive international cooperation to tackle (it)." NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS HONG KONG, CHINA (FEBRUARY 20, 2013) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF CEO OF STEVE VICKERS AND ASSOCIATES, AND FORMER HEAD OF THE ROYAL HONG KONG POLICE CRIMINAL INTELLIGENCE BUREAU, STEVE VICKERS READING MANDIANT REPORT ON ALLEGED CYBER CRIME VARIOUS OF MANDIANT REPORT (SOUNDBITE) (English) CEO STEVE VICKERS AND ASSOCIATES, STEVE VICKERS SAYING: "Well it's very topical. It's unusual for a report to be as specific as this in terms of tracking, apparently tracking the source to a specific building and blaming a specific military unit. So that's actually quite unusual in terms of topicality. In terms of reality, there's nothing new in what's been revealed. This sort of activity has gone on for many years and many companies have been victims." VARIOUS OF REPORT
- Embargoed: 9th March 2013 12:23
- Keywords:
- Location: China
- Country: China
- Topics: International Relations,Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA7103584WNDTSCUSU1W7BR7R39
- Aspect Ratio: 4:3
- Story Text: China's Defence Ministry said on Wednesday (February 20) that accusations by a U.S. computer security company that a secretive Chinese military unit is likely behind a series of hacking attacks are scientifically flawed and hence unreliable.
In a statement carried by state television CCTV, the ministry said China's military has never supported cyber attacks.
"Hacking is an international problem, like other countries, China is also facing severe threats of cyber attacks. China is one of the most hit hacking victims in the world. The Chinese law forbids hacking or any activity that sabotage cyber security. The Chinese government has been consistently and resolutely cracking down on relevant criminal activities. The Chinese army has never supported any hacking activity. Statements about the Chinese army engaging in cyber attacks are unprofessional and not in line with facts," said a CCTV anchor when reading out the statement.
The statement came after the White House said overnight that the Obama administration has repeatedly taken up its concerns about cyber-theft at the highest levels of the Chinese government, including with Chinese military officials.
The security company, Mandiant, identified the People's Liberation Army's Shanghai-based Unit 61398 as the most likely driving force behind the hacking. Mandiant said it believed the unit had carried out "sustained" attacks on a wide range of industries.
The Chinese Defence Ministry, which has already denied the charges, went further in a new statement, slamming Mandiant for relying on spurious data.
"The report, in only relying on linking IP address to reach a conclusion the hacking attacks originated from China, lacks technical proof," the statement read.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said China has been in contact with the U.S. over the issue.
"China and the U.S. have maintained communication over the relevant issue. Yesterday I have already said that on the issue of Internet hacking attacks, China has always emphasised that all countries should, on the basis of mutual respect and mutual trust, engage in constructive international cooperation to tackle (it)," Hong told a regular news conference in Beijing.
Unit 61398 is located in Shanghai's Pudong district, China's financial and banking hub, and is staffed by perhaps thousands of people proficient in English as well as computer programming and network operations, Mandiant said in its report.
The unit had stolen "hundreds of terabytes of data from at least 141 organisations across a diverse set of industries beginning as early as 2006", it said.
Most of the victims were located in the United States, with smaller numbers in Canada and Britain. The information stolen ranged from details on mergers and acquisitions to the emails of senior employees, the company said.
Steve Vickers, a Hong Kong-based security expert said international hacking activities happened on a daily basis, but that it was "unusual" that Mandiant tracked it to a specific source.
"Well it's very topical. It's unusual for a report to be as specific as this in terms of tracking, apparently tracking the source to a specific building and blaming a specific military unit. So that's actually quite unusual in terms of topicality. In terms of reality, there's nothing new in what's been revealed. This sort of activity has gone on for many years and many companies have been victims," said Vickers, who is also CEO of Steve Vickers Associates and former head of the Royal Hong Kong Police Criminal Intelligence Bureau.
Though privately held and little known to the general public, Mandiant is one of a handful of U.S. cyber-security companies that specialise in attempting to detect, prevent and trace the most advanced hacking attacks, instead of the garden-variety viruses and criminal intrusions that befoul corporate networks on a daily basis. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None