China's defense minister on Sunday reiterated the nation's denial in having any involvement in a series of cyber attacks on U.S. security systems.
“The Chinese government attaches importance on cyber security and stands firmly against all kinds of cyber crimes,” Liang Guanglie noted during an Asia-Pacific security forum in Singapore. “It is hard to attribute the real source of attacks.”
Liang added that China also sees a “wide range” of cyber attacks, and that nations need to work together to mitigate the effects of hacking and other Internet crimes, according to the Inquirer News.
Sunday's denial comes on the heels of earlier reports from Google (News 
- Alert) that say hackers in China were responsible for breaching hundreds of Gmail accounts, including those of U.S. government officials, Chinese political activists and local journalists. Google said that the hack originated in the city of Jinan, which is home to a military technical college and a regional command center for the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
Neither Google nor the U.S. has pointed blame directly at the Chinese military, but that hasn't stopped them from firing back.
Two members of China’s Academy of Military Sciences penned an article for the China Youth Daily last week that said an “Internet tornado has swept across the world ... massively impacting and shocking the globe. Behind all this lies the shadow of America.”
Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei added that Google's allegations had no merit, and suggested that those who blamed China had “ulterior motives.”
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates and British Defense Secretary Liam Fox were also in attendance at the security conference in Singapore, and reiterated the need for international cooperation against cyber crime, according to Reuters.
Gates indicated that “serious international tensions” could be alleviated if global rules were created that “let people know what kinds of acts are acceptable, what kinds of acts are not, and what kinds of acts may in fact be an act of war.”
The conference follows an extremely trying couple of months for major corporations on the cyber security front. Electronics giant Sony has seen its network virtually crumble under the pressure of a series of recent cyber attacks, while Lockheed Martin (News - Alert) and other major defense contractors are fighting off breaches of their own.
Want to learn more about the latest in communications and technology? Then be sure to attend ITEXPO West 2011, taking place Sept. 13-15, 2011, in Austin, Texas. ITEXPO (News - Alert) offers an educational program to help corporate decision makers select the right IP-based voice, video, fax and unified communications solutions to improve their operations. It's also where service providers learn how to profitably roll out the services their subscribers are clamoring for – and where resellers can learn about new growth opportunities. To register, click here.
Beecher Tuttle is a TMCnet contributor. He has extensive experience writing and editing for print publications and online news websites. He has specialized in a variety of industries, including health care technology, politics and education. To read more of his articles, please visit his columnist page.
Edited by Jennifer Russell
