U.S. hits back against Chinese cyberattacks

The Chinese military hacker unit has conducted operations since at least 2013 in support of China’s naval modernization effort. (U.S. Navy) (Photo by: Samuel Shavers)

 

American intelligence and military cyberwarriors have begun conducting counter-cyberattacks against Chinese intelligence and military targets, according to a U.S. official.

The counterattacks are part of a new Trump administration policy designed to retaliate for rampant cybertheft of American technology by the Chinese that has caused estimated losses ranging from $200 billion to $600 billion a year. Details of the U.S. cyberoperations were not disclosed, and the activities remain classified.

The hacking is likely to include theft of Chinese advanced military know-how, such as hypersonic missile technology — an area of military research where China is believed to be ahead of the United States. Another possible target would be technology related to China’s anti-ship ballistic missile technology like that deployed in the DF-21D ship-killing missile. Such technology requires maneuvering warheads and special guidance.

Pentagon: China, Russia Soon Capable of Destroying U.S. Satellites

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin / Getty Images

 

J-2 intelligence report warns of new dangers to low earth orbit satellites

China and Russia are developing anti-satellite missiles and other weapons and will soon be capable of damaging or destroying all U.S. satellites in low-earth orbit, according to the Pentagon’s Joint Staff.

The Joint Staff intelligence directorate, known as J-2, issued the warning in a recent report on the growing threat of anti-satellite (ASAT) weapons from those states, according to officials familiar with the assessment.

Get Ready, America: Russia and China Have Space Weapons

It was a grave mistake for America to halt Reagan’s Star Wars space program almost 30 years ago. It’s now 2016 and a rapidly-gaining Sino-Soviet axis is attaining first-strike capability on the United States, all while it suicidally disarms and holds the belief that it’s taking the “moral high road”. If it were to restart the program tomorrow, it would still be years behind its adversaries.

 

 

Russia and China are increasingly pursuing the ability to attack America’s space-based assets, but is there anything the Pentagon can do to thwart Beijing and Moscow’s ambitions?

While it is sometimes treated as an afterthought here on earth, space-based capabilities like GPS, communications and reconnaissance satellites are the sinews that hold the U.S. military together, allowing American forces to operate across the globe. That’s a fact, however, that has not gone unnoticed in Beijing or Moscow.

A Space War With China or Russia Is a Real Threat

America could’ve been the king of space decades ago and the the fate of the nation wouldn’t be in jeopardy, but it suicidally chose to abandon Reagan’s Star Wars space warfare program. Sadly, most people in the press are far behind in recognizing this or choose to look the other way and ignore it. The unintelligent community which has a bad habit of being years behind in detecting threats, only to be routinely ‘shocked’ when they ‘suddenly’ discover it, is of more concern.

 

A war in space sounds like a great plot for a summer blockbuster.

Unfortunately, a conflict in space isn’t just a Hollywood movie script anymore, but a threat in the real world.

Both Russia and China have developed, or are developing, the ability to shoot satellites out of space.

China could defeat US in East Pacific conflict by 2020: Russian analyst

In a commentary published on Dec. 27 on the website of the Voice of Russia, the Russian government’s international radio broadcasting service, Kashin says it is “highly probable” that by 2020 China could defeat the US in a local conflict in the east part of the Pacific or slow down the transportation of US forces to the region after it completes its current cycle of reforming and rearming the People’s Liberation Army.

“China could be able of reaching its political goals even before the US localizes all the necessary forces for a full-scale counterattack,” Kashin said.

Vulnerable Military Satellites Creating a ‘Maginot Line’ in Space (Updated)

While the possibility of anti-satellite weapons, jamming and cyber-attacks aimed at the U.S. military’s fleets of communication satellites is making them vulnerable to adversaries, declining defense budgets constitute an equal threat to the space architecture the services rely upon, according to a report released July 24.

Like the Maginot Line that gave the French a false sense of security prior to the German Blitzkrieg in World War II, the U.S. military has assumed since the end of the Cold War that no one would dare launch an physical attack on its satellites because that would violate international norms. Just as the Germans did away with such niceties and invaded France through a neighboring country, an adversary could go after one of the military’s biggest Achilles’ heels, its space-based communication system, said Todd Harrison, senior fellow for defense budget studies at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, and author of a new report, “The Future of Milsatcom.”

China Conducts Test of New Anti-Satellite Missile

As it’s been reported here a few times: Like Iran, like China… or vice versa. See the following previous entries for further information:

• Iran sends monkeys into space – so can place nukes anywhere on earth
• Iran Says It Will Send Monkey into Space in 2012
• Iran launches observation satellite: media

China’s military on Monday conducted the first test of a new ground-launched anti-satellite missile that was fired into space and disguised as a space-exploration rocket, according to U.S. officials.

The test was carried out early Monday from the Xichang Space Launch center and was identified by officials as the new Dong Ning-2 ASAT missile.