‘This is what World War 3 looks like. It’s the speed of technology, the stealth of unrestricted warfare, and no rules,’ says a U.S. security expert.
WASHINGTON—China’s communist regime is engaged in a worldwide campaign of cybercrime and leading experts believe that the United States is failing to respond swiftly enough to counter the threat.
“In the current era of cyber, it’s all about speed,” retired Army Col. John Mills told The Epoch Times.
“You have to presume a breach, and that the threat is inside. Looking at it from that perspective, it’s all about speed of identification, speed of ejection. The U.S. government is not good at that.”
All signs indicate that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its proxies are engaged in a robust and global cybercrime campaign that aims to both destabilize the regime’s foes and position itself for a potential war with the United States.
“This is an extraordinary threat,” said Mr. Mills, who previously served as the director of Cybersecurity Policy, Strategy, and International Affairs at the Department of Defense.
A cache of leaked documents that surfaced in late February implicated the regime’s direct involvement in overseas cyber espionage.
The documents belonged to a criminal hacking group called I-SOOn, which masquerades as a legitimate business in China, apparently with the regime’s blessing.
The leaked files revealed the group’s infiltration into government departments in India, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, and South Korea, as well as NATO organizations.
Files included product manuals, marketing materials, employee lists, chat records, financial information, and details about foreign infiltration efforts.
Some of the documents that were verified by the Associated Press show that the majority of the group’s clients are based within China’s regional security bureaus and the CCP’s Ministry of Public Security.
Mr. Mills said the revelation was “predictable,” and that CCP authorities have a long history of conducting illicit tasks in addition to their formal duties.
“The CCP and the government, which is one [and] the same thing, knew these people were moonlighting. This is part of the culture of corruption [in China],” Mr. Mills said.
