Washington accuses five Chinese for industrial cyber espionage

The theft of intellectual property and trade secrets has become the latest source of tension between the United States and China. Cyberwar is also targeting commercial interests. The Obama Administration on Monday reported five Chinese military personals to infiltrate computers  of many American companies. The indictment, announced in Washington by the Department of Justice, represents the first time that the U.S. has criminal charges against officials of another country’s spy network.

The military is accused of usurping secrets of some of the largest U.S. companies in key sectors such as steel, aluminum and nuclear energy. Hackers linked to the unit 61398 of Chinese People’s Liberation Army, obtained privileged information  in litigation with American companies.

“This administration will not tolerate the actions of any country  try to sabotage American companies and undermine the integrity of fair competition in the operation of the free market,” said Attorney General Eric Holder, head of the Justice Department. According to one estimate cited by The Washington Post, the commercial cyber espionage costs the U.S. between 24,000 and 120,000 million dollars a year.

The industrial espionage and violations of intellectual property scores  the relationship between the U.S. and China for years, according to a widespread fear in Washington. The Pentagon and intelligence agencies have strengthened offensive and defensive against possible cyber attacks on infrastructure and defense systems capabilities.

A report of the American private enterprise Mandiant, published in February 2013, identified a building of Chinese Armed Forces in Shanghai where tens of cyber attacks allegedly initiated to companies around the world. A unit of property ascribed, according to the indictment filed in federal court in Pennsylvania, Wang Dong, Sun Kailiang Wen Xinyu, Huang Zhenyu and Gu Chunhui, the five responsible for hacking.

“This group is not one of the most advanced. They are not the smartest in the class, so to speak, “says Jaime Blasco from California, a researcher at Alien Vault, a Silicon Valley expert in the field of cyber security. Blasco has worked for clients who were victims of attacks from China. “The problem,” he adds,”is that there are several dozen other groups operating in China and other countries that are much better and have much more capabilities.”

The complaint may serve to set an example and deter imitators. If they were convicted, the defendants could face decades in prison, but is unlikely to end up in a U.S. court. The Obama administration hopes that the mere fact of naming them, and limit their mobility  have a punitive effect. “It’s an important step. And I’m optimistic,” says Blasco. “At the same time,” he adds, “I think it’s difficult, and sets a precedent that opens Pandora’s box.”

Other countries may now decide to bring American officials to justice. Information on the vast network of surveillance NSA (National Security Agency) have opened the door to similar claims against the United States. The roles of the NSA in 2013 Edward Snowden, a former employee of the U.S. intelligence services, revealed that the agency agreed to hack computers of Huawei, the Chinese telecommunications giant.

“As President Obama has said repeatedly: we do not collect intelligence to provide a competitive advantage to U.S. companies or U.S. business sectors,” Attorney General Holder defended. Criminals, warned, charges should serve as a “warning about the seriousness of the cyber threat.” Access to Western technology is key to the economic development of the Asian giant.

China has launched cyber attacks against sectors ranging from energy to finance. The effected companies are Westinghouse Electric, Alcoa, Allegheny Technologies, U.S. Steel and Solar World, and the United Steelworkers union.

Short URL: https://www.newspakistan.pk/?p=44245

Posted by Nadeem Bajwa on May 21 2014. Filed under USA. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.