Foreign spy agencies have been using idle or discarded network devices belonging to Chinese firms, including servers and cameras, to launch cyberattacks and steal China’s national secrets, the country’s top anti-espionage agency warned on Friday.
The Ministry of State Security (MSS), posting on the Chinese messaging app WeChat, said it had noticed the trend in recent years.
In one case, a foreign spy agency had taken control of a Chinese firm’s server that remained in the company’s computer room even though it was no longer in use. The server was then used to launch a spy attack, the ministry said in the article.
05:29
China executes scientist for spying in 2016, among 10 ‘shocking’ cases revealed in documentary
China executes scientist for spying in 2016, among 10 ‘shocking’ cases revealed in documentary
The MSS said that in another case, a camera monitoring platform was attacked, with analysis showing that the platform’s server held the usernames and passwords for many users’ cameras. The system had not been maintained or updated for a long time, leading to a high risk of data leaks, the article said.
The ministry said that if a spy agency took control of the platform, it could manipulate its cameras and use them to steal secrets. Meanwhile, network ports could also be controlled by overseas agencies to log onto servers and launch attacks.
The MSS cautioned that as China’s network equipment was upgraded, the risks pertaining to idle equipment also increased and that units with access to top secrets should better manage this equipment and better train staff to carry out periodic checks and prevent the risk of leaks.
Furthermore, idle equipment in information systems should be checked, ports no longer in use should be closed and any security loopholes plugged, the MSS said.
Denial of responsibility! Pioneer Newz is an automatic aggregator of the all world’s media. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, all materials to their authors. If you are the owner of the content and do not want us to publish your materials, please contact us by email – [email protected]. The content will be deleted within 24 hours.
