03 June,2011 07:23 AM IST | | Agencies
State authorities refute charges that the country was behind hacks into accounts of top US government officials
Chinese cyber warfare experts have denied charges their country was behind a fresh wave of cyber attacks on Gmail accounts, and say that it is China that stands "naked" against American internet intrusions.
Zhang Jiadong, at Fudan University's US Study Centre, said China's cyber warfare capacities were so insignificant compared with the US that the country was "not even qualified to talk about cyber war."
Chinese cyber warfare experts claim that their capacities are insignificant compared to US
"We are standing naked in front of the United States," said Professor Zhang. "It can check what we are up to from the back door any time, anywhere."
Yesterday, Google outlined new allegations that Chinese hackers have targeted hundreds of Gmail users, including senior US government officials.
Hackers in China, allegedly gained access to Gmail passwords by tricking users into responding to phishing e-mails, allowing them to plant malware.
The Google revelations came one day after the US government officially confirmed for the first time that a cyber attack could be considered an act of war, triggering a military response.
The official statement of US military deterrence follows a stream of reports about an increase in the number and severity of Chinese intrusions into the information networks of foreign governments, multinational technology, defence and resource contractors, human rights advocates and even the personal computer of the Dalai Lama.
The personal computers of senior Australian leaders have reportedly been penetrated while the large Australian mining companies face persistent cyber assaults.
Cyber experts believe many attacks originate with hackers inside military intelligence units of the People's Liberation Army, the Ministry of State Security or individual hackers with links to Chinese intelligence.
China has played down its capacities for cyber warfare, shrugged off the Google and US government announcements and suggested it } would now respond by bolstering its own cyber defence capacities.
