Posted on 12/23/2005 9:39:43 PM PST by wallcrawlr
China's rapid economic expansion has allowed Beijing to fund a recruitment drive targeting some of the best and brightest IT graduates from U.S. universities, according to Chinese sources.
In turn, this brain trust is being used by China both as a control on its own Internet revolution and as a potential resource for North Korea' cyberwar program.
South Korea’s defense ministry said North Korean hackers are targeting the most tightly-guarded systems of that country's main foes to extract intelligence information and to spread viruses capable of wiping out material or, at least, slowing down computers.
Defense officials said privately that North Korea, with no great pool of computer whizzes from which to select, is relying on Chinese aid and advice to train some 600 qualified hackers in five years.
One Hong Kong-based specialist said China has a budget for hiring the best IT graduates from U.S. universities to monitor and control Internet news reporting, and useage within its own borders as well as for a national security resource. "They've got the money, and they are spending it," he said.
In North Korea, the campaign ranks as a priority for Kim Jong-Il, who whetted his appetite for computer skullduggery during visits to China and Russia several years ago. Kim made a point of visiting computer labs in both countries and decided that all North Koreans should somehow become adept at operating computers even though Internet access is forbidden except for the highly privileged elites.
Those having access include Kim Jong-Il’s closest relatives, friends and allies, notably from the armed forces, as well as extremely well-trained technicians who had to pass strenuous tests of loyalty before being accepted into the elite computer course.
Students are studying in China and also at an academy that South Korean officials say has been educating a cadre of elite technicians for more than 20 years in a remote mountainous region.
So, how much $$ would it take for you to work for the communists?
Would it be ok for me to think of these IT grads as having dubious if not treasonous behavior??
Depends on whether or not the CIA approached me with an offer I couldn't refuse. ;-)
make sure they know their citizenship and future visas will be declined upon accepting this offer.
How about a Walmart Roll Back special? Buy our goods so the Chinese can buy our minds....they already own our souls.
Who knows, if the Chinese do not want the very best they could probably offer 50K and still get more applicants than there are Chinese spies at a Falun Gong rally!
However at 80K the Chinese could probably have a good slew of candidates to pick from, as long as they are fresh out of school. In the late 90s no, now definitely. If the Chinese government wanted to really pepper the deal with pixie dust they could raise it to 150K (and they could afford that easily) and be guaranteed virtually any fresh grad (plus the grad's first born child, and the family labrador thrown in for good measure).
HOWEVER when the article says that it is 'recruting US IT grads' I think that what it means (I could be wrong though) is that the Chinese government is recruiting Chinese people who came to the US to study at top-echelon institutions of learning, and is thus trying to get them to go back to China. I know that the Chinese government has been doing something similar with Chinese professionals who came to the US, got a green card, and are specialists in some field or other. They offer really attractive packages to get these professionals to head back to China. Thus this could be the same thing, whereby the Chinese government is luring Chinese students (who went to illustrious colleges and garnered gilded degrees) to head back after graduation.
I doubt they are trying to get Joe All-American with a 4.0 from MIT, born and bred in the US of A.....unless they want to try and turn him into a spy. They are probably after Chinese Hu, who has a 4.0 GPA from MIT, and who came to the US to study and now that he has graduated is being offered incentives to go back to China instead of remaining in the US.
I would also consider that once physically in China or NK just saying, "I quit!" is not an option. Getting back home could be very difficult.
>>Defense officials said privately that North Korea, with no great pool of computer whizzes from which to select, is relying on Chinese aid and advice to train some 600 qualified hackers in five years.
It is more and more obvious that North Korea is just a cut-out for China.
You're assuming that these are U.S. citizens. A large percentage of IT graduate and undergraduate student are foreigners. U.S. students are staying away from a major where the jobs are all going overseas.
I hope we could get some double agents in the enemy's ground.
I think you are right about who they are recruiting. Since one of the things they are recruiting for is checking Internet content, the candidate would have to be able to read Chinese. However, if they do find an American to take the job, that American better read his passport - #4 under Loss of US Citizenship - You may lose your US citizenship by working for a foreign government.
If one is a free traitor, they must embrace the migration of U.S. labor to a hostile nation.
Ahh, but what is loyalty to a nation when money is involved? (/bitter sarcasm)
"I hope we could get some double agents in the enemy's ground."
Yup, sounds like a ripe opportunity to get some double agents into the ChiComs Hacker Corps.
Its amazing people are willing to become Benedict Arnolds just so they can have alot of money.
I think the article may be referring to US Born citizens, Not Chinese Born Citizens studying in a US school, Also most students the Commies send always come back after aquiring first hands experience part of the agreement where the Commies pay for their tuition for the best of the best they have at hand at the best of the best school money has to offer.
Thought they were grad'ing three times the engineers the USA was.
Also you might get in but you might not get out. Depending on what and how much you know.
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