U.S. Air Force sets up cyberspace command against continuing China attacks

World Tribune ^ | 4/10/08 | staff

[pissant]

China has developed cyber warfare forces and the Air Force has created a cyberspace command to provide both defensive and offensive computer network weapons, a senior Air Force general said last week.

Asked if China was planning a cyber “Pearl Harbor” surprise attack, Maj. Gen. William Lord, the cyber forces commander, said numerous Chinese-origin probes may be “reconnaissance” intrusions to determine if cyber warfare capabilities are detected as part of preparation for some future attack.

“So when the lights go out, when the traffic lights don't work, when the data in the stock exchange has been manipulated, when the cell phones don't work, when the escalators in FAO Schwartz don't work, imagine what happens within the United States. Imagine that now laid over a command and control ability of any force,” he said at a conference of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Air Force Col. Jeffrey Kendall, who appeared with Lord, said China has been among the most active players in the cyberwarfare arena. Chinese hackers took down a White House website in 2001 and in June 2007, the Chinese military was behind an attack on the secretary of defense’s unclassified email systems. And in August 2007, 28 defense contractors were targeted by Chinese hackers.

[grey_whiskers]

Like, *PING*, folks.

Please look at post 10 this thread.

[txhurl]

Someone on the Minot thread mentioned China may have hacked the inventory systems that resulted in those nukes being mis-managed.

[Rick.Donaldson]

I have to say this... this command has been around a long long time. I was recruited to go there during my reserve days, many years ago now. About 1994 or 1995, if I remember correctly.

I’m a little surprised they are “just setting up” the Command, since the units have been there for a rather long time.