Interestingly during the last few years, the PLA’s tactic has undergone a shift from ‘active defense’, (never attacking someone first, but being ready to respond if attacked) to ‘active offense’ which means to undertake “cyber reconnaissance, cyber-stratagem, and computer exploitation activities” before a conflict. Thomas expounds: “IO [Information Operation] tactics and techniques allow more emphasis on the principle of offense than on traditional warfare. A weaker force, for example, can inflict much damage on a superior force with a properly timed and precisely defined asymmetric information attack. China portrays itself regularly as the weaker side of the U.S.-Chinese relationship. It thinks that offensive operations… are key to victory.”
Chinas strategists believe the United States is dependent on information technology and that this dependency constitutes an exploitable weakness.
The PLA has no problem with using the Chinese war theory ‘attack with a borrowed sword’ which means using thousands of individual hackers who can be co-opted as the need be without the risk of the government being caught red-handed.
The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission concluded its report of China’s cyber operations, by stating: “In operationalizing this cyber strategy, authors of China’s military doctrine have articulated five key elements”.
- Defense. Many Chinese authors believe the United States already is carrying out offensive cyber espionage and exploitation against China. China therefore must protect its own assets first in order to preserve the capability to go on the offensive.
- Early use. PLA analysts believe that in many cases a vulnerable U.S. system could be unplugged in anticipation of a cyber attack. Therefore, for an attack to be truly effective, it must be launched early in a conflict before the adversary has time fully to protect itself.
- Information operations. Cyber operations can be used to manipulate an adversary’s perception of the crisis, such as by planting misinformation. This could obviate the need for a conventional confrontation or advantageously shape an adversary’s response.
- Attacking an enemy’s weaknesses. China’s strategists believe the United States is dependent on information technology and that this dependency constitutes an exploitable weakness.
- Preemption. Many PLA strategists believe there is a first mover advantage in both conventional and cyber operations against the United States. Therefore, in order to succeed, they should strike first.”
Well, that is ‘active offense’. In India, we are told that the NTRO is working on some projects for hack-proofing official sites, but it will probably remain Computer Network Defense (CND) defined as “actions to protect information systems and computer networks, and to monitor for, analyze, detect, and respond to unauthorized activity within those networks.”
In other words, ‘active defense only’. Like in many other defense sectors, China is already far ahead.
Notes
- See http://www.lancerpublishers.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=411&osCsid=330127 b319cf19553d6f3ff1b83b2618.
- The PLA’S High-Tech Future by Richard Fisher in China Brief (Volume 1, Issue 4, August 28th, 2001).
- China’s Cyber-Militia by Shane Harris in National Journal Magazine (May 31, 2008), see http://www.nationaljournal.com/njmagazine/cs_20080531_6948.php.
- 2008 Report to the Congress of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, November 2008, also Available on: http://www.uscc.gov.
- Available on http://www.lulu.com/content/1345238.
- India Today, Spy versus Spy, by Sandeep Unnithan (September 7, 2007).
- Military Review China’s Electronic Long-Range Reconnaissance written by Lt. Col. Timothy Thomas (November-December 2008). See http://usacac.army.mil/CAC2/MilitaryReview/Archives /EnglisMilitaryReview_20081231_art 009.pdf.
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Indian national security???? what are you talking ???
We are Indians . We dont have national security.
We do have VVIP security – Z+ security. Which is given by self styled VVIPs for VVIPs, from the money looted from Indians.
National Security and all these trivial concepts may be a hot issue in the west not here. Because……
WE R INDIANS !!!! didnt u know?