What to do about Hacker U?

Tracking back to the source of cyber-wrongdoing is hard, but there have been many reports that some highly sophisticated attacks recently against Google and others might well have come from the elite Shangahi Jiaotong University and Lanxiang Vocational School, an institution with ties to the Chinese military (cyber thieves news).

One could spin some conspiracy theories here, like the vocational school making it seem like the elite school was responsible. Or that the state is responsible in some way. Both schools deny involvement, and their government is backing them up. In any case, the news suggests the strength and intellectual firepower of the modern hacker.

The episode raises lots of issues about criminal activity in a global era (data security news). International cooperation would appear to be a must, but that is going to be difficult. For now, countries are taking a parochial, and indeed jingoistic, approach that will ultimately aid the criminals. We have yet to see a country step up and take a leadership role in this area. Is this something the U.N. ought to take on? Or the G20? The problems will only get worse as the methods become more international.

For more:
- here's a New York Times article
- here's the Reuters article

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