U.S. Defense Strategy Plan Focuses on Thwarting China, Iran – Businessweek

Jan. 4 Bloomberg — The U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines must combine resources to thwart any efforts by countries such as China and Iran to block America’s access to the South China Sea, the Persian Gulf and other strategic regions, according to a draft of a Pentagon review.The military services must work more cooperatively to pool their intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities and cyber-security tools, as well as operational concepts, the review is expected to say, according to an administration official familiar with the review who asked not to be identified.The U.S. should be able to deter any emerging anti-access capabilities such as the diesel attack submarines being developed by China and the anti-ship ballistic missiles deployed by China and Iran, and if necessary, defeat them, said the administration official.Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is due to unveil the review tomorrow, setting policy priorities in addressing about $490 billion in budget cuts over the next decade.

via U.S. Defense Strategy Plan Focuses on Thwarting China, Iran – Businessweek.

Chinese Cyber-Espionage Growing

TAIPEI – A new U.S. intelligence report declares the most active and persistent perpetrator of economic espionage is China.The report, issued by the U.S. Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive ONCIX, draws on the inputs and reporting from more than a dozen U.S. law enforcement and intelligence collection bodies, including the CIA, FBI, DIA and NSA.RELATED TOPICS. Americas-Asia & Pacific RimChina views economic espionage as an “essential tool in achieving national security and economic prosperity,

” the report said.The report – “Foreign Spies Stealing U.S. Economic Secrets in Cyberspace: Report to Congress on Foreign Economic Collection and Industrial Espionage, 2009-2011” –

indicates the U.S. intelligence community judges the use of cyber tools is now a greater threat than more traditional espionage methods.

via Chinese Cyber-Espionage Growing: U.S. Report – Defense News.

China link found to virus targeting diplomatic offices : National : DAILY YOMIURI ONLINE (The Daily Yomiuri)

The computer virus used in targeted attacks against Japanese diplomatic missions overseas was designed to transmit identification data and other information from infected computers to two servers in China, it has been learned.

One of the two servers in China is registered at a domain that was also used in cyber-attacks against online search giant Google in 2009-2010, sources said Thursday.

This and other circumstantial evidence suggests the virus is part of international espionage efforts targeting classified Japanese diplomatic information.

The virus has infected dozens of computers at Japanese diplomatic offices in 10 countries, including the Japanese Embassy in South Korea, since this summer.

According to sources close to the case, the virus is called “BKDR_AGENT.MOF.”

via China link found to virus targeting diplomatic offices : National : DAILY YOMIURI ONLINE (The Daily Yomiuri).

Japanese parliament hit by cyber attack from China – IT News from V3.co.uk

China has been implicated in a cyber attack designed to hack the emails of Japanese parliament members, as news emerged that details on nuclear plants and war planes may have been stolen from a separate attack on Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

Japanese newspaper The Asahi Shimbun reported on Tuesday that a server located in China was used for the attack on the Japanese Lower House. This led to an extraordinary meeting of a key subcommittee after it emerged that hackers had access to emails and documents belonging to the chamber’s 480 legislators for at least one month.

via Japanese parliament hit by cyber attack from China – IT News from V3.co.uk.

AFP: Mitsubishi Heavy ‘targeted by over 50 computer viruses’

TOKYO — Japanese defence contractor Mitsubishi Heavy has been hit by over 50 separate computer viruses in a series of cyber attacks so far this year, a report said Monday.

One of the infected computers contracted 28 types of virus, including ones that could have been prevented with existing anti-virus software, the Yomiuri Shimbun said, amid concerns over the security of defence information.

The defence ministry plans to tell Mitsubishi Heavy to file detailed reports on its cyber security measures, the newspaper said.

Mitsubishi Heavy is analysing 83 computers hit by the attacks and has found more than 50 kinds of viruses, significantly more than the eight strains that the company announced on September 19, the newspaper said.

The company declined to comment for the Yomiuri story, citing an ongoing police investigation, while Mitsubishi officials could not be reached on Monday — a national holiday — for immediate comment.

via AFP: Mitsubishi Heavy ‘targeted by over 50 computer viruses’.

Cyber Revenge Against Japan?

The world has grown wearily accustomed to the concept of cyberspace being mankind’s newest battleground. So while the Japanese defence establishment was understandably unsettled by the recent cyber attacks against arms company Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI)—which first occurred in August but were only disclosed this week—the phenomenon will have struck governments and corporations that have experienced similar attacks as nothing particularly new.

The specifics of the attack on MHI and other Japanese entities remain unclear. While the Japanese media has attempted to trace the attack back to China—the usual suspect in these cases—its origin has not been publicly confirmed. Certainly, Beijing denied that it was involved, as it always does, despite admitting earlier this year to the existence of a PLA cyber warfare unit known as the Blue Army.

via Cyber Revenge Against Japan? | Flashpoints.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Hacked: Japan Defense Industry’s First Cyberattack

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s biggest defense contractor, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd, said on Monday hackers had gained access to its computers, with one newspaper saying its submarine, missile and nuclear power plant component factories had been the target.

The company said in a statement that some information could have been stolen in the first known cyber attack on Japan’s defense industry.

“We’ve found out that some system information such as IP addresses have been leaked and that’s creepy enough,” said a Mitsubishi Heavy spokesman.

via Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Hacked: Japan Defense Industry’s First Cyberattack.