China Hacks Pentagon Computers September 3 rd, 2007

Leading up to the Sept. 3 rd Hacking. What other countries have been affected? Countries that have been affected by China’s People’s Liberation Army ( PLA) include Britain, Germany, and prior attacks on the U.S. Chinese Hackers reportedly hacked into the British government networks, Pentagon networks in June, 2007, and three different German ministries in August After opposing the German reports and now the U.S. accusations reports surfaced of Chinese made weapons that have been used by Taliban fighters in Afghanistan (sciam.com Para. 4).

What information was reportedly seized? U.S. officials reported to the Financial Times that they believed the attack that shut down Defense Secretary Robert Gates’ computer system was the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA). The Financial Times reported that some “unclassified financial information was obtained” (defensetalk.com (Para. 5).. Britain officials state that Chinese hackers “infiltrated government networks, giving them access to secret information. Germany also reported a breach in their computer systems in August, The information recovered spanned three different ministries and was said to be the “biggest digital defense ever mounted by the German State.

Opposition Foreign Minister Jiang Yu states that China is also a victim of hacking. In an interview with the Financial Times Jiang told journalists the accusations against China were “groundless”. He also turned the blame around to the U.S. stating that “there are some in the U.S. who were seeking to damage the Sino-U.S. military relations” (psyorg.com Para. 7). Jiang also stresses the fact that to cut down on the amount of pornography being obtained by the internet Chinese are only allowed to use the internet for personal use for two hours a day. An editorial from the Financial Times stated “It is possible to assume that U.S. and other western governments are busy infiltrating the computer systems of foreign governments” (salon.com Para. 7) Above: Chinese Internet Cafe

Societal Impacts Hysteria (CIA downplayed event) Possible connection with known Terrorist organizations Impact on trading Possible invasion of U.S. (new type of warfare)

Questions? How does this affect you? Due to the media coverage on this event are there more attempts to hack government computer systems? What do you think China can gain from obtaining the information obtained in this attack?

What is China up to? Is the hacking of the Pentagon on September 3 rd a new type of warfare? China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) most likely the suspect. Citizens in China are recruited to try and hack into government systems. What will be there next move? Hacking attack shut down Defense Secretary Robert Gates’ computer system. Is the PLA capable of totally disarming America’s Department of Defense computer systems? Is America able to defend themselves against future attacks?