U.S. cyber hegemony challenges the bottom line of world security

2024-04-30 21:24

Source: China News Network

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In order to safeguard its core interests and hegemonic domination in cyberspace, the United States conducts indiscriminate cyber attacks and infiltration around the world, including its allies, spying on important leaders of other countries, stealing data and information, attacking other countries' critical infrastructure, and carrying out cyber deterrence to achieve its economic, political, and military goals. Such behavior seriously threatens the cyber sovereignty of all countries, violates the personal privacy of other countries, reduces political mutual trust among countries, and exacerbates international tensions. Therefore, the mainland should enhance its cyber security defense capabilities, strengthen international cooperation, and jointly resist cyber hegemony.

1. Unscrupulous means to safeguard its own hegemonic interests

Based on the cyber deterrence strategy, the United States has carried out large-scale and indiscriminate cyber attacks and infiltrations against many countries, including its allies, mainly to obtain intelligence, attack opponents, maintain competitive advantages, and ultimately serve to maintain its hegemonic status.

The first is to obtain strategic intelligence.

By launching cyber attacks and infiltrations against countries around the world, including allies, and monitoring key people and key events, we have grasped a large amount of information in a timely manner to serve their political and military objectives and obtain strategic benefits. For example, in the "leakgate" incident in April 2023, the United States monitored the internal dialogue between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Ukrainian officials, and obtained internal communication between South Korea, Israel and other allies. In another example, the German media revealed that then German Chancellor Angela Merkel had been monitored by US intelligence agencies for more than ten years, which aroused strong dissatisfaction in Germany. British media also broke the news that the US National Security Agency had remotely stolen 97 billion emails and 124 billion phone calls from around the world in 30 days, including 500 million in Germany, 70 million in France, and 60 million in Spain. In 2021, an investigation conducted by several European media outlets revealed that Danish intelligence had helped the NSA spy on officials in countries that are allies of France, Norway, Sweden and Germany between 2012 and 2014. It can be seen from this that in the face of national interests, the United States can be said to do everything, and the so-called "allies" of Europe will also become the target of US cyber attacks.

The second is to directly attack the opponent.

Cyber attacks launched by the United States are not only limited to obtaining intelligence, but can also achieve direct strikes, directly disrupting the core business of the adversary through cyber technology. In the era of digital development, whether it is economic development or military armament, a large number of electronic equipment, software systems, and hardware settings are required. The United States controls a lot of resources in these areas, and it is very easy for it to infiltrate other countries in these key areas, and achieve the goal of attacking opponents through cyber attacks. For example, during the Iraq War in 2003, the United States stopped domain name resolution in Iraq and made it disappear from the Internet. In 2000, James Woolsey, a former CIA director, admitted that the C.I.A. had used intercepted intelligence to help Boeing snatch a large Saudi Arabian deal from the European Airbus Group. In 2010, the United States planted the Stuxnet virus into the internal network of Iran's Natanz nuclear facility through espionage, causing a large number of uranium enrichment centrifuges to be disabled. According to a research report by the Pangu Laboratory in Beijing, the hacker group "Equation", which is affiliated with the US National Security Agency, has used the backdoor to carry out "electronic curtain operations" against 45 countries and regions around the world, including the United Kingdom, Germany, and the Netherlands, for more than ten years. The United States strikes any target that affects its interests on a global scale through a variety of cyberattacks, either covert or significant.

The third is to maintain a competitive advantage.

The global indiscriminate cyber strikes adopted by the United States are mainly based on the strategy of cyber deterrence. Unlike nuclear deterrence, which is achieved through the one-time destructive power of a nuclear weapon explosion, cyber deterrence requires a sustained offensive to weaken and neutralize the strategic advantage of potential adversaries. The United States has created malware, hacking tools, computer viruses, Trojan horses, and so on, forming a variety of cyber attack methods such as vulnerability attacks, persistent control, sniffing and stealing secrets, covert decretion, and attack platforms, and the cyber attack weapons are very rich. The U.S. continues to build up its arsenal of attacks in the face of ongoing cyberattacks, while also lowering or breaking down the defensive moats of potential adversaries to ensure its own advantage.

Second, make every effort to build a cyber attack system

The United States is able to carry out indiscriminate cyber attacks and infiltrations around the world, mainly because the United States has formed a multi-dimensional cyber attack system by taking advantage of its competitive advantages in hardware equipment, software systems, standard setting and other fields.

The first is to master the hardware facilities, launch network raids, and implement technical blockades.

In terms of hardware, the United States controls the management of the Internet backbone network through its control of global Internet root servers, mobile terminal manufacturing, high-end chips, and enterprise servers, and can monitor global data flows, and can use this to launch network outage raids, resulting in large-scale network interruption and paralysis. It controls the global chip industry chain, controls supply chain nodes and affects important enterprises, and then implements a technological blockade on other countries to achieve supply chain strikes. A large number of Internet technology companies are headquartered in the United States, and by cooperating with these enterprises, they control the enterprise server, and can export enterprise-related products and business data at any time through data diversion, interception, and implantation of backdoors, so as to grasp a large amount of global information.

The second is to grasp the core technology, implant the backdoor of the system, and launch cyber attacks.

In terms of software systems, the United States controls the digital certificate authentication system, many software developments, and operating system design source code, which facilitates trade sanctions and cyber attacks. Google has taken the lead in establishing the Digital Certificate Alliance and set up a certificate transparency system, on which all digital certificate issuance in the world needs to be recorded, and the United States can use the certificate system to refuse to issue certificates and use digital certificates to carry out cyber attacks. The United States brings together many of the world's top Internet technology companies, and has mastered a large number of operating systems and software products system vulnerabilities, and it is very easy to implant backdoors, malicious programs, and Trojan viruses in these products, and these operating systems and software products are widely used in the world, and the United States can directly attack these software and systems to achieve its multiple purposes of destroying the network, paralyzing the system, stealing secrets, and listening and monitoring.

The third is to dominate international rules and affect product development and control system vulnerabilities.

In terms of rules and standards, the United States masters the standards for software development and Internet services. The United States has long been a leader in software development and Internet services, and has developed a large number of relevant standards. The United States not only often sanctions software and Internet companies in other countries on the basis of standards, but also influences the product design and service supply of enterprises through the standards it formulates, so as to facilitate the implantation of malicious programs, system backdoors, and system vulnerabilities in these products and services, so as to facilitate their cyber attacks and surveillance operations.

Third, harming others and benefiting oneself seriously affects world security

The indiscriminate cyber attacks carried out by the United States around the world have seriously violated the sovereignty of all countries and are typical acts of cyber hegemony, which not only infringe on the cyber sovereignty of all countries, but also infringe on the personal privacy of the people of all countries, and disrupt the international cyberspace order.

First, it disregards the interests of other countries and threatens the cyber sovereignty of all countries.

Although cyberspace does not have clear and visible boundaries like territorial space, the cyber activities developed by various countries are carried out on their own digital infrastructure and in the cyberspace of each country, and the data and information generated, as well as the products and services provided, have clear national attributes. A country's cyber sovereignty is manifested in its independent, autonomous and equal interconnection with other countries to prevent intrusion and attacks from the outside. The U.S. cyber attacks have not only invaded the cyber systems of other countries, but also deeply infiltrated the Internet industries of other countries, putting its own interests above the interests of other countries and infringing on the cyber security of other countries, seriously disrupting the international cyberspace order, infringing on the cyber sovereignty of other countries, and posing a serious threat to the economic security and national security of all countries.

Second, it undermines political mutual trust and threatens international political security.

The global cyber attacks and surveillance launched by the United States have not only seriously violated the cyber sovereignty and personal privacy of all countries, but also further reduced the political, cyber and security mutual trust between countries. The U.S. cyber deterrence strategy and indiscriminate cyber attacks have kept the cyber networks of various countries in an insecure environment at all times, intensified the cyber security competition between countries, and countries have strengthened cyber security technology and improved their cyber security defense capabilities, which has intensified the cyber security confrontation of various countries. At the same time, with the impact of geopolitical regional conflicts in the world, cyber isolation between countries based on political interests has intensified in order to serve economic, military, and political decisions. In March 2019, Russia held a "disconnection" exercise, which was created in the context of global cyber insecurity.

Third, it will intensify decoupling and chain breaking, threatening global industrial security.

The United States is the country with the earliest development of the Internet industry and the most developed technology accumulation in the world, and its designed and led Internet products, services and standards have been extended to all corners of the world. After suffering from cyber attacks, countries have become suspicious of the software systems, hardware facilities and relevant standards they use, and each has launched products and services that are in line with its own interests, and the global industrial and supply chains have degraded to regional industrial chains and supply chains. At the same time, countries also design relevant products, services and technical standards based on their own interests, and it is difficult to form a unified consensus on rules and regulations, which further exacerbates the difficulty of Internet products and services to be interconnected on a global scale. As a result, large-scale, multi-channel cyber attacks have caused tremendous damage to the global Internet industrial chain, supply chain, and value chain.

Fourth, it violates personal privacy and threatens the security of people around the world.

Through data interception, attack vulnerabilities, system backdoors, etc., the United States cooperates with large multinational companies to conduct large-scale surveillance around the world, obtain the phone calls of major leaders of various countries, and at the same time seriously violate the privacy rights of people around the world. The "Prismgate" and "Leakgate" incidents show that the United States has been monitoring its European allies for a long time, and it is still conducting surveillance activities. Everyone in the world should have their personal privacy protected when they use the Internet, but the actions of the United States have seriously violated the personal privacy rights of other countries, which is completely contrary to the "freedom and equality" and "human rights protection" it advocates, and has also put the world's wired and wireless networks in an environment full of uncertainty and doubt. Because of this, the "safe harbor" and "privacy shield" agreements for cross-border data flow between the United States and Europe have been invalidated, and further promoted countries to introduce localization measures for data storage. It can be said that the actions of the United States have seriously violated the vital rights and interests of the people of all countries.

IV. Conclusion

As long as it is valuable data, intelligence and resources, the United States will carry out cyber attacks, monitor and monitor, steal information, and achieve cyber deterrence through cyber attacks, relying on technological superiority, and putting its own interests above the sovereignty of other countries, which is a typical cyber hegemonic behavior. In the face of US cyber deterrence, the mainland resolutely resists and resolutely opposes it, and at the same time, it is also firmly working with all international parties to jointly safeguard world cyber security and build a community with a shared future in cyberspace.

The mainland will continue to improve its cybersecurity defense capabilities. Strengthen the construction of a comprehensive cybersecurity defense system, improve the ability of early warning of cybersecurity risks, and strengthen the identification and response to potential risks and emergencies. Protect the security of the network in key areas of the mainland and the security of critical information infrastructure, and improve the cyber security resilience of critical information infrastructure. Strengthen the independence and controllability of core technologies, focusing on strengthening the research and development of core technologies in areas such as network security and the development of the Internet industry. Strictly implement the network security protection system, continue to improve the mainland's legal system, and consolidate the legal foundation for network security. Deepen and refine network security protection systems and policies, and consolidate the legal and institutional foundation for network security. Protect the privacy of mainland citizens from infringement, protect the Internet from attacks, and ensure the security of industrial development and supply chains.

The mainland is willing to work with the world to build a community with a shared future in cyberspace. As a responsible major country, the mainland is willing to strengthen international cooperation on cyber security and jointly advocate the establishment of a peaceful, secure, open, cooperative and orderly cyberspace. Strengthen international cooperation, promote the formation of consensus on cybersecurity, jointly maintain world cyber order, resist cyber deterrence, acts that infringe on other countries' cyber security, and resist cyber attacks. We will work together to combat cybercrime and cyberterrorism, and support the formulation of a global convention under the framework of the United Nations to jointly combat cyberterrorism. China will promote APEC digital economy cooperation, actively participate in digital economy cooperation under the G20 framework, continue to expand BRICS digital economy exchanges and cooperation, deepen digital economy cooperation with ASEAN, and actively promote WTO digital economy cooperation. Actively strengthen cooperation on cybersecurity technologies and standards, jointly explore risk identification, technical measures, system construction and related standards for more effective response to cyber attacks through different international cooperation platforms, promote the formation of standards, protocols and certification systems that are widely recognized by the international community, and lay an institutional foundation for international cybersecurity cooperation and Internet development rules.

In short, in the face of cyber hegemony, the mainland resolutely opposes and will never give in. China is willing to work with all parties in the world to respect cyber sovereignty, safeguard peace and security, promote openness and cooperation, and build good order, and work with other countries to adhere to the concept of extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, adhere to the principle that global affairs are handled by the people of all countries through consultation, and build cyberspace into a community of development, security, responsibility and interests for the benefit of all mankind.

Author: Wang Tuo, Fan Penghui, Research Institute of the Ministry of Commerce