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For the first time， cybersecurity has been included in the Chinese Government’s annual work agenda. “We will safeguard cybersecurity，” said Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in his government work report to this year’s full session of the National People’s Congress， China’s top legislature， on March 5. The report outlined the top priorities for China’s development in 2014 and beyond.
Before Li’s remarks， President Xi Jinping pledged on February 27 to strengthen China’s Internet security and build the nation into a strong cyber power at the first meeting of a central Internet security and informatization leading group， which he heads. Informatization is the extent to which information and communication technologies are utilized by a country in its economic， political and cultural fields and how much of a driving force it is behind each of these.
The group is designed to lead and coordinate Internet security and informatization work between different sectors， as well as draft national strategies， development plans and major policies in this field， according to Xi.
China has to balance its needs to develop IT technologies and safeguard Internet security， Xi said， who stressed their importance by describing the two issues as “the two wings of a bird and the two wheels of an engine.”
A weak link
China has the world’s largest Internet population. Statistics from the China Internet Network Information Center （CNNIC） showed the number of Internet users in China reached 618 million at the end of 2013， and the total market value of Internet companies exceeded $300 billion.
Meanwhile， the country is the world’s second-largest target for hackers globally in terms of attack frequency， only slightly behind the United States， according to a report from the Web security company Beijing Rising Information Technology Co. Ltd.
According to Cai Mingzhao， Minister of China’s State Council Information Office， more than 20，000 websites based in China were targeted by hackers in January-August 2013， and more than 8 million servers were compromised and controlled by overseas computers via zombie and Trojan programs at the same time， up 14 percent from the same period in 2012.
“These activities have caused severe damage to our economy and the everyday lives of the people，” Cai said.
On January 21， tens of millions of netizens in China lost access to the World Wide Web due to a critical malfunction of the Domain Name System （DNS） infrastructure. The snag， caused from a cache poisoning attack， was an unprecedented malfunction both in terms of the number of websites affected and the duration of the disruption. It left large numbers of top-level domains—including those ending in .com， .net and .org—out of commission and affected around two thirds of Chinese websites.
The DNS works as a navigator when people surf online， directing page view requests to their corresponding IP addresses.
Root name servers form the backbone of the DNS system and are responsible for returning addresses to Internet users when they visit a website. Without them， accessing the Internet would not be possible.
Hacking the DNS can trick the server into guiding requests to the wrong site. Technically， hackers can direct netizens to phishing websites. Such behavior can result in user information being compromised， said Zhao Wu， a website security expert with Beijing-based tech firm Qihoo 360 Technology Co. Ltd. He added that it is difficult to take precautions against such threats.
The January 21 incident， however， only led netizens to a blank page， and no leakage of information has been reported， according to Zhao.
Experts said that security awareness concerning DNS is weak in China and that most major domain name servers are poorly guarded.
“All the root name servers are located in the United States， Japan and European countries. A problem with them would affect all the domain name processes and websites in China，” said Dong Fang， another website security expert with Qihoo 360.
CNNIC Executive Director Li Xiaodong admitted that China does not have the required conditions to set up a root name server. “The only way to improve the Internet’s speed and stability is to introduce more root name server mirrors，” he said.
Li called on the government to spend more on the country’s DNS infrastructure and stressed that a quick-responding mechanism for emergencies is badly needed. “The country should see the DNS as a critical national strategic infrastructure because it is the foundation of the entire Internet，” Li noted.
The January 21 incident has also spurred experts to reflect on whether China is ready for a possible cyber war， suggesting that the government learn from other countries’ experience.
Currently， more than 50 countries have formulated strategies for Internet security and more than 40 countries have established special forces for cyber warfare.
In 2009， the United States established the United States Cyber Command for its armed forces to deal with the military’s cyberspace operations. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security also has an Office of Cybersecurity and Communications that is responsible for “enhancing the security， resilience and reliability of the nation’s cyber and communications infrastructure.”
At a 2013 meeting attended by representatives from big global enterprises， Minister Cai said that China values other countries’ experiences in developing and administering the Internet and is willing to conduct more exchanges and cooperation in combating online crime， enhancing Internetrelated legislation and promoting public awareness in relevant fields.
A new battlefield
Today， a new security challenge is posed by the fact that more people and companies are using mobile devices for their businesses.
A total of 648 million people in China were using mobile phones to access the Internet in 2013， an increase of more than 54 percent year on year， according to CNNIC statistics.
With the majority of Chinese companies using mobile devices in their daily business， attackers are eyeing the mobile Internet for loopholes in corporate systems.
“About 57 percent of enterprise data centers will be running on the cloud by 2015. The centralization of information may help hackers steal large amounts of information by attacking one cloud-computing facility，” said Wu Hequan， Chairman of the China Communications Standard Association and an academician with the Chinese Academy of Engineering.
Because most company executives are using smartphones or tablets to access their business e-mail or undisclosed company information， breaches of these mobile devices could cause serious damage to the target companies， said Tang Tiebing， a security expert at NQ Mobile Inc.， a leading mobile security provider in China.
“Although no major data losses were reported in the mobile sector， it does not mean that these services are safe，” Tang added. “It is highly possible that somebody has been using mobile devices to collect company information for quite some time without being caught.”
According to a survey released by PricewaterhouseCoopers （PwC） last December， less than a quarter of companies on the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong were adequately prepared for an information security incident. Average financial loss due to breach of security in 2013 was $1.8 million on the Chinese mainland and in Hong Kong， higher than the Asia-Pacific average of $1.6 million. Meanwhile， a report released by Beijing Rising Information Technology Co. Ltd. on January 14 revealed that more than 800，000 newly developed smartphone viruses were detected in 2013， “dozens of times” higher than the previous year.
Official statistics show that app stores and online cell phone forums contributed to 62 percent of malware transmitted among mobile phones.
To crack down on the trend， the AntiNetwork-Virus Alliance of China （ANVA） has released a list of 23 reliable app stores. Smartphone users are advised to download apps only from authorized sources.
However， a report by Qihoo 360 and research firm Gartner warned that by 2020， there will be a sharp increase in “advanced targeted attacks” that could bypass traditional protection mechanisms and persist undetected for extended periods of time.
Aware of the serious damage of cyberattacks， many companies in China have taken action. For example， nearly 80 percent of large and medium-sized state-owned enterprises have started adopting business security software protection， said Qihoo 360.
Use of office computers for personal use， ineffective Wi-Fi management and delayed vulnerability fixes are among the most pressing security issues for companies based in China， Qihoo 360 said， adding that the device with the lowest security decides the security level of the entire enterprise network system.
Technical Terms
Malware： A term for any software that gets installed on a computer and performs unwanted tasks， often for some third party’s benefit.
Zombie： A computer that has been compromised so that it automatically does a certain task while connected to the Internet without it’s owner being aware.
Trojan： A type of malware named after the wooden horse the Greeks used to infiltrate Troy.
Phishing： The process of stealing personal information such as usernames， passwords and credit card details.
Cache poisoning： The hacking of a DNS server so that all Internet traffic using the server is redirected to an address of the hacker’s choosing.
（Compiled by Beijing Review）
Before Li’s remarks， President Xi Jinping pledged on February 27 to strengthen China’s Internet security and build the nation into a strong cyber power at the first meeting of a central Internet security and informatization leading group， which he heads. Informatization is the extent to which information and communication technologies are utilized by a country in its economic， political and cultural fields and how much of a driving force it is behind each of these.
The group is designed to lead and coordinate Internet security and informatization work between different sectors， as well as draft national strategies， development plans and major policies in this field， according to Xi.
China has to balance its needs to develop IT technologies and safeguard Internet security， Xi said， who stressed their importance by describing the two issues as “the two wings of a bird and the two wheels of an engine.”
A weak link
China has the world’s largest Internet population. Statistics from the China Internet Network Information Center （CNNIC） showed the number of Internet users in China reached 618 million at the end of 2013， and the total market value of Internet companies exceeded $300 billion.
Meanwhile， the country is the world’s second-largest target for hackers globally in terms of attack frequency， only slightly behind the United States， according to a report from the Web security company Beijing Rising Information Technology Co. Ltd.
According to Cai Mingzhao， Minister of China’s State Council Information Office， more than 20，000 websites based in China were targeted by hackers in January-August 2013， and more than 8 million servers were compromised and controlled by overseas computers via zombie and Trojan programs at the same time， up 14 percent from the same period in 2012.
“These activities have caused severe damage to our economy and the everyday lives of the people，” Cai said.
On January 21， tens of millions of netizens in China lost access to the World Wide Web due to a critical malfunction of the Domain Name System （DNS） infrastructure. The snag， caused from a cache poisoning attack， was an unprecedented malfunction both in terms of the number of websites affected and the duration of the disruption. It left large numbers of top-level domains—including those ending in .com， .net and .org—out of commission and affected around two thirds of Chinese websites.
The DNS works as a navigator when people surf online， directing page view requests to their corresponding IP addresses.
Root name servers form the backbone of the DNS system and are responsible for returning addresses to Internet users when they visit a website. Without them， accessing the Internet would not be possible.
Hacking the DNS can trick the server into guiding requests to the wrong site. Technically， hackers can direct netizens to phishing websites. Such behavior can result in user information being compromised， said Zhao Wu， a website security expert with Beijing-based tech firm Qihoo 360 Technology Co. Ltd. He added that it is difficult to take precautions against such threats.
The January 21 incident， however， only led netizens to a blank page， and no leakage of information has been reported， according to Zhao.
Experts said that security awareness concerning DNS is weak in China and that most major domain name servers are poorly guarded.
“All the root name servers are located in the United States， Japan and European countries. A problem with them would affect all the domain name processes and websites in China，” said Dong Fang， another website security expert with Qihoo 360.
CNNIC Executive Director Li Xiaodong admitted that China does not have the required conditions to set up a root name server. “The only way to improve the Internet’s speed and stability is to introduce more root name server mirrors，” he said.
Li called on the government to spend more on the country’s DNS infrastructure and stressed that a quick-responding mechanism for emergencies is badly needed. “The country should see the DNS as a critical national strategic infrastructure because it is the foundation of the entire Internet，” Li noted.
The January 21 incident has also spurred experts to reflect on whether China is ready for a possible cyber war， suggesting that the government learn from other countries’ experience.
Currently， more than 50 countries have formulated strategies for Internet security and more than 40 countries have established special forces for cyber warfare.
In 2009， the United States established the United States Cyber Command for its armed forces to deal with the military’s cyberspace operations. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security also has an Office of Cybersecurity and Communications that is responsible for “enhancing the security， resilience and reliability of the nation’s cyber and communications infrastructure.”
At a 2013 meeting attended by representatives from big global enterprises， Minister Cai said that China values other countries’ experiences in developing and administering the Internet and is willing to conduct more exchanges and cooperation in combating online crime， enhancing Internetrelated legislation and promoting public awareness in relevant fields.
A new battlefield
Today， a new security challenge is posed by the fact that more people and companies are using mobile devices for their businesses.
A total of 648 million people in China were using mobile phones to access the Internet in 2013， an increase of more than 54 percent year on year， according to CNNIC statistics.
With the majority of Chinese companies using mobile devices in their daily business， attackers are eyeing the mobile Internet for loopholes in corporate systems.
“About 57 percent of enterprise data centers will be running on the cloud by 2015. The centralization of information may help hackers steal large amounts of information by attacking one cloud-computing facility，” said Wu Hequan， Chairman of the China Communications Standard Association and an academician with the Chinese Academy of Engineering.
Because most company executives are using smartphones or tablets to access their business e-mail or undisclosed company information， breaches of these mobile devices could cause serious damage to the target companies， said Tang Tiebing， a security expert at NQ Mobile Inc.， a leading mobile security provider in China.
“Although no major data losses were reported in the mobile sector， it does not mean that these services are safe，” Tang added. “It is highly possible that somebody has been using mobile devices to collect company information for quite some time without being caught.”
According to a survey released by PricewaterhouseCoopers （PwC） last December， less than a quarter of companies on the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong were adequately prepared for an information security incident. Average financial loss due to breach of security in 2013 was $1.8 million on the Chinese mainland and in Hong Kong， higher than the Asia-Pacific average of $1.6 million. Meanwhile， a report released by Beijing Rising Information Technology Co. Ltd. on January 14 revealed that more than 800，000 newly developed smartphone viruses were detected in 2013， “dozens of times” higher than the previous year.
Official statistics show that app stores and online cell phone forums contributed to 62 percent of malware transmitted among mobile phones.
To crack down on the trend， the AntiNetwork-Virus Alliance of China （ANVA） has released a list of 23 reliable app stores. Smartphone users are advised to download apps only from authorized sources.
However， a report by Qihoo 360 and research firm Gartner warned that by 2020， there will be a sharp increase in “advanced targeted attacks” that could bypass traditional protection mechanisms and persist undetected for extended periods of time.
Aware of the serious damage of cyberattacks， many companies in China have taken action. For example， nearly 80 percent of large and medium-sized state-owned enterprises have started adopting business security software protection， said Qihoo 360.
Use of office computers for personal use， ineffective Wi-Fi management and delayed vulnerability fixes are among the most pressing security issues for companies based in China， Qihoo 360 said， adding that the device with the lowest security decides the security level of the entire enterprise network system.
Technical Terms
Malware： A term for any software that gets installed on a computer and performs unwanted tasks， often for some third party’s benefit.
Zombie： A computer that has been compromised so that it automatically does a certain task while connected to the Internet without it’s owner being aware.
Trojan： A type of malware named after the wooden horse the Greeks used to infiltrate Troy.
Phishing： The process of stealing personal information such as usernames， passwords and credit card details.
Cache poisoning： The hacking of a DNS server so that all Internet traffic using the server is redirected to an address of the hacker’s choosing.
（Compiled by Beijing Review）