Experts Say Chinese, Russians Are Main Hackers of Newspapers
Why would Russia or China care about hacking into other newspapers?
Perhaps the answer is to identify the sources, i.e, the names and addresses from which the stories come? The question has to be asked then, what do they do with information that they uncover?
Here is one thing that we know for certain, it is still illegal in this country for the government to spy on its citizens, (although it is done everyday) so the NSA spies on other countries, using technology such as Echelon, and then gives that information to for instance, Canada. Likewise Canada (or China, or Russia) spies on the U.S., and in turn, gives the U.S. information they have discovered. Technically, no illegal search and seizure has been performed and the government can claim their hands are clean.
So, whose to say that is not what is happening at Newspapers and the other "new media" outlets where sources are discovered and later turned over to the U.S.? The real question to me is, what is China doing with the information they are uncovering? -W.E.
VoiceofAmerica
Three US news organizations -- The New York
Times, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post -- say Chinese
hackers have infiltrated their company's computers to track their
coverage of China. Perhaps the answer is to identify the sources, i.e, the names and addresses from which the stories come? The question has to be asked then, what do they do with information that they uncover?
Here is one thing that we know for certain, it is still illegal in this country for the government to spy on its citizens, (although it is done everyday) so the NSA spies on other countries, using technology such as Echelon, and then gives that information to for instance, Canada. Likewise Canada (or China, or Russia) spies on the U.S., and in turn, gives the U.S. information they have discovered. Technically, no illegal search and seizure has been performed and the government can claim their hands are clean.
So, whose to say that is not what is happening at Newspapers and the other "new media" outlets where sources are discovered and later turned over to the U.S.? The real question to me is, what is China doing with the information they are uncovering? -W.E.
VoiceofAmerica
Some experts say this has been an on-going problem for more than five years. These cyber attacks are different than most because of the danger to individuals.
A gallery at the Newseum in Washington shows the connection between technology and the news.
But the use of new media can also provide an opening for hackers -- who want to know what reporters are covering and who's giving them information.
These newspapers are not alone. Experts think nearly every media outlet has been attacked -- they either don't know it or don't report it. Hacking hits here, too, at the Voice of America.
VOA's Tibetan service broadcasts four TV shows a week and five radio shows a day. Bureau Chief Losang Gyatso says his people confront hackers daily.
"We basically don't keep any of our contact information from our sources on our computers. We are very careful. We have shields and filters on all of our hard drives,"Gyatso said.
"Tibet.net is the Tibetan government in exile, so that address has been stolen, basically."
Gyatso says, like with the US newspapers, hacking has been traced to China.
Alan Paller has trained 145,000 cybersecurity experts around the world. He says more than 100 countries are involved in cyber espionage.
"China is noisier, meaning their techniques are often easier to find so they get caught a lot and so you read a lot of stories about them. But the Russians are just as prolific and much more clandestine."
Paller says current firewalls, anti-virus, and intrusion systems are not enough.
"Although you can build high walls, people build higher ladders. So you have to catch the guys who are good enough to get over. The way you do that is not with tools, but with skills and right now the media companies have not focused on this as a skill area. They figure they'll hire somebody after it happens," Paller said.
The Newseum has a memorial to journalists who have died while on duty. Many were killed by people opposed to their reporting. Patty Rhule is on the committee that reviews the names. She's afraid of what hacking can lead to.
"If they can do it secretly, by a few clicks of a computer, that's an even more ominous note that you wouldn't even know who's coming after you," Rhule said.
Experts say the key is to make your computer so impenetrable that the hacker doesn't click -- and instead moves on to an easier victim.