What Is a Cyber Spy?

Not all "hackers" are computer network spies. There are tens of thousands of computer network intrusion events every day in the world, but most of them cannot be said to be computer network spy intrusions. Computer network espionage must have certain conditions: computer network espionage must use computer network as a tool to steal and tamper with information on enemy or foreign computer networks. Hackers are not the same as spies. Strictly speaking, all cyber spies are hackers, and all hackers are potential spies.

Cyber spy

In order to obtain the required information, a computer network spy can generally invade an enemy or a foreign computer network, intercept information on the enemy or a foreign computer network, and collect and organize public information on the enemy or a foreign computer network. Illegal invasion of an enemy or a foreign computer network means that a computer network spy breaks through the security mechanism of the enemy or a foreign computer network, performs unauthorized access, and obtains confidential information on the enemy or a foreign computer network. Interception of information from enemy or foreign computer networks means that computer network spies do not enter the target computer network, but receive the wired or

People may think that cyber espionage is often called a "hacker", but not all "hackers" are computer network spies. There are tens of thousands of computer network intrusion events every day in the world. Computer network spy intrusion. The difference between hackers and spies is that they all have spies

I believe everyone is no stranger to spies. Wearing hats, sunglasses, tweed suits, and cigarettes in his mouth are typical images of traditional spies in movies. The spy and mysterious spies are active in every corner, stealing a large amount of important information, and there have been countless confusing and thrilling spy wars in various fields such as politics, economy, military, science and technology. The espionage is of great significance. Its important role has always been valued by various countries. Sometimes espionage has become the key to determining the outcome of a war.

Generally speaking, the danger of the spy lies not in gathering intelligence, but in his communication with the contact person, because this is the easiest to expose the target. However, with the widespread use of the Internet, spies can safely pass information online. They can encrypt the information, or transform it into a language that only the parties understand. What's more, due to the rapid development of coding technology, spies can also mix information into digital signals, sound signals, music, and even television signals to pass on, which makes counter-intelligence departments have a headache.

Because cyber spies use computer networks as tools, they have distinct characteristics compared to traditional spies:

For a long time, the world's "espionage war" has been intricately complicated, and now its field of struggle has quietly expanded to the invisible space of computer networks.

People are no strangers to spies. One after another, the spy and mysterious spies are active in all corners, stealing a lot of important information, and there have been countless confusing and thrilling spy wars in various fields such as politics, economy, military, science and technology. The espionage is of great significance. Its important role has always been valued by various countries. Sometimes espionage has become the key to determining the outcome of a war.

Today, computers and their networks permeate all sectors of society at an extremely fast rate, and more developed countries rely more on computer networks. The U.S. military has the world's largest computer network system, known as the "Defense Information Infrastructure". This huge system consists of 2.1 million computers, 10,000 LANs, 100 WANs, 200 command centers, and 16 large-scale networks. Computer center composition. The U.S. military is the world's most dependent on computer networks. From military command and weaponry to personnel redeployment and military distribution, it is highly dependent on computer networks. With the widespread use of computer networks, a large amount of confidential information is stored and transmitted in computer networks, and many spies have set their sights on this new field of computer networks. Computer network spies have emerged as the times require.

In the information age, computer networks have provided fast and efficient means for spying, which has triggered a revolution in spying methods. Computer networks are where the secrets are most concentrated. On April 20, 1987, a U.S. Air Force spokesman said that over the past 10 years,

In the information age, computer networks have provided fast and efficient means for spies, and have also initiated a revolution in "anti-spy" means:

"Anti Cyber Spy Fighter"

Refers to those who have extensive computer network knowledge and are proficient in various computer network offensive and defensive skills. Once invaded in February 1998

according to

"Chinese Internet spies invaded 1,295 computers in 103 countries in two years." A recent report released by the University of Toronto in Canada once again ignited the "Chinese hacker theory" in the West.

The report states that China has a huge "ghost network" that specifically steals confidential information from embassies, foreign ministers, media organizations and international organizations. Coincidentally, several British intelligence officials have recently pointed their finger at China, warning the government that the threat of Chinese cyber attacks is enough to paralyze Britain. In this regard, a Chinese expert told the Global Times that this statement sounded very exaggerated and, to ordinary people, was more like a nightmare. "In fact, China has more externally attacked computers, but China has never attacked a specific country. The West talks about 'Chinese cyber spies' without conclusive evidence. It is mean and casual."

According to the British "Guardian" and the United States "New York Times" reported on the 29th, the University of Toronto, Canada Moncton International Research Center

Qin Gang refuted Chinese cyber spies at press conference

The Citizens Lab claims that after 10 months of research, they discovered a "large-scale" Internet spy network based in China. Project spokesman Greg Wharton said the network had penetrated 1,295 computers in 103 countries and "seems to be concentrated in East and Southeast Asian countries, as well as Dalai's computers in India, Brussels, London and New York offices. . The Guardian claims that the spy network is called a "ghost network," which can steal confidential information by controlling the computer's audio and video, and monitor the computer's location and users. But Wharton said the research team was "not sure who the specific attackers were," and they would issue a "more detailed report" a week later. The BBC said the research began after Dalai claimed that his office computer was hacked by Chinese hackers. The report said there was evidence that hackers from China installed a type of spyware on a controlled computer. These hackers have managed to penetrate the computers of embassies in India, Pakistan, Germany, Indonesia, Thailand, South Korea and other countries. However, the BBC said Canadian researchers said there was no evidence that "the Chinese government was involved in these hacking activities." The New York Times reported that the FBI declined to comment publicly on the report, although a spokesman for the project claimed that they had notified the parties.

In response to this report, the UK has also recently reported that "Chinese cyber attacks are sufficient to paralyze the UK". According to the British "The Times" reported on March 29, British intelligence officials recently warned the government that they believe that China's cyber attack strategy has changed from directly attacking government departments' networks to attacking larger and more complex livelihood networks. The use of BT's network is a powerful channel. Eric Allen, chairman of the British Joint Intelligence Committee, pointed his finger at Chinese company Huawei, saying that Huawei currently provides technical support for British Telecom, and they worry that "Huawei, which has core control technology, can control the network at any time, resulting in energy across the UK. , The transportation of food and water is paralyzed. "

The so-called "Chinese cyber spy" is no longer a new topic in the West. The US Congress has thus prevented the White House and other US government agencies from ordering Chinese Lenovo computers, and the British JIC think tank has recently warned the British government and police that they should avoid computer and Internet equipment updates. Using Chinese products "so as not to be penetrated by Chinese cyber spies." In Canada, hype "Chinese spies" is even more common.

Information security expert Qiu Feng said in an interview with the Global Times reporter that Western media said that China has a huge overseas spy network is nonsense. He said: "China is a big country in the development of informatization, and Europe and the United States are the developed countries of informatization. When it comes to China's overseas spy network, the word" overseas "is very important. To what extent does this network develop and where is the source? It is not easy to build such a large network and organize personnel and coordinate attacks in different countries. " The expert said that from a technical point of view, the user of an IP address registered in a country may be anyone, how can it be determined that this person is from China or employed by China. "This news is more like a thrilling spy story told by the media. Looking at people with a bit of technology, this story is full of loopholes, saying that there is no sufficient evidence for such a large overseas spy network in China, and this network There is no such thing as technology or organization. "

Song Xiaojun, an expert on military issues, said that this kind of statement in the West came entirely from imagination. In fact, China does not want to play cyber warfare at all. It does not have such a target, nor does it have such strength. In addition, some experts said that the West has constantly criticized China on the issue of network security, but in fact, facing the more powerful West, China is the victim of cyber attacks, but China rarely points out publicly. This is an imbalance in information, and it also gives some people in the West a chance to discredit China. We should take precautions against this and refute as much as we can.

Song Xiaojun said that the rise of China's new technology platforms in recent years has made the West frightened. They believe that China will become a big country and that China will follow their old path. In addition, information warfare requires a large number of network talents, and China's network development has indeed made considerable progress in recent years.