If you read this blog post to the end, you will have read one unlike any I ever have written. My goal is not political. I am using China only because the subject is current and likely to have some emotional resonance with most people. The blogpost's genesis can be traced to my discussion with someone who regards any unflattering talk about the Chinese as racist, as attempting to elevate those who subscribe to “traditional American values,” and as denigrating everyone non-American. For that reason, here I have chosen to cite only liberal, “progressive” sources for the data about China to which I refer. Most of what follows merely are my literal quotes to information readily available to you from the URLs and webpages listed.
I must underscore, again, that I am not writing this as a political statement, but rather as a way to encourage you to think about general emotion-charged pro- or anti- opinions that you automatically entertain. You see, as a psychologist, I am interested in facilitating your insight into your mentation, not to your acceding to any particular political opinions. So, let’s try this and see what YOU think about what follows, since that’s all that really matters.
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Confronting China’s Efforts to Steal Defense Information
Author: Jeff Jones | May 2020
https://www.belfercenter.org/publication/confronting-chinas-efforts-steal-defense-information
The Robert and Renée Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, also known as the Belfer Center, is a research center located within the Harvard Kennedy School at Harvard University, in the United States.
CONFRONTING CHINA’S EFFORTS TO STEAL DEFENSE INFORMATION
1. Introduction
China’s cyber espionage activities represent a significant threat to the United States military and the safety and security of this nation. Defense contractors, research institutes, and universities are failing to adequately secure their computer networks, allowing China to steal research and development pertaining to some of America’s most important military technology. This wholesale theft represents losses to the United States in the range of hundreds of billions of dollars per year.
So, why are contractors and research institutes so vulnerable to having their work product stolen? Given the technical and sensitive nature of these activities one would assume that these companies would take enormous care in protecting that information from being stolen or destroyed. What, after all, could be more important than information pertaining to the defense of the nation? However, the track record for many defense contractors in protecting classified information is abysmal and seems to suggest that the United States government values this information much more than the companies contracted to research and develop it. Simply put, the United States is not incentivizing the protection of this information, so contractors and research institutes are not making cybersecurity a priority…
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POLITICS
Chinese hackers took trillions in intellectual property from about 30 multinational companies
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/chinese-hackers-took-trillions-in-intellectual-property-from-about-30-multinational-companies/#:~:text=The%20CCP%20continues%20to%20increase,China%20counterintelligence%20investigation%20every12%20hours.
In May 2021, the Justice Department charged four Chinese nationals connected to APT 41 for their participation in a global computer intrusion campaign targeting intellectual property and sensitive business information. The FBI estimated in its report that the annual cost to the U.S. economy of counterfeit goods, pirated software, and theft of trade secrets is between $225 billion and $600 billion.
But researchers from Cybereason say it is hard to estimate the exact economic impact of Operation CuckooBees due to the complexity, stealth and sophistication of the attacks, as well as the long-term impact of robbing multi-national companies of research and development building blocks.
"It's important to account for the full supply chain – basically selling a developed product in the future, and all the derivatives that you're gonna get out of it," Div said.
"In our assessment, we believe that we're talking about trillions, not billions," Div added. "The real impact is something we're going to see in five years from now, ten years for now, when we think that we have the upper hand on pharmaceutical, energy, and defense technologies. And we're going to look at China and say, how did they bridge the gap so quickly without the engineers and resources?"
Cybersecurity firms including Eset Research have previously detailed supply chain attacks carried out by APT 41. In August 2019, Mandiant released a report detailing the evolution of the group's tactics, and techniques, as well as descriptions of individual criminal actors.
According to Cybereason's report, the APT group leveraged both known and previously undocumented malware exploits, using "digitally signed kernel-level rootkits as well as an elaborate multi-stage infection chain," comprising six parts. That clandestine playbook helped criminals gain unauthorized control of computer systems while remaining undetected for years.
The FBI has consistently warned that China poses the largest counterintelligence threat to the U.S.
"[China has] a bigger hacking program than that of every other major nation combined. And their biggest target is, of course, the United States," FBI Director Christopher Wray said Friday, during a public forum at the McCain Institute.
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The Rise of English in China: A Threat to China’s National Unity?
https://www.georgetownjournalofinternationalaffairs.org/online-edition/2017/8/16/the-rise-of-english-in-china-a-threat-to-chinas-national-unity#:~:text=This%20is%20a%20staggering%20statistic,100%20and%20300%20million%20people.
Currently between 440-650 million Chinese citizens are learners of English. This is a staggering statistic, not only because it implies that thirty to fifty per cent of China’s population of 1.35 billion is currently learning English, but also because this number surpasses the English-speaking population of the United States by between 100 and 300 million people…
English permeates many facets of Chinese culture. It can be found in advertisements, brands, and business names as an indicator of international prestige. English is also increasingly used in both local and national television and print news. For example, the national television broadcaster Central China Television (CCTV) replaced its 30-minute daily programming in English with a channel offering 24-hour English programming.
The dominant role of English in China is perhaps most visible in education. In 2001, when China joined the World Trade Organization (WTO), the country adopted a policy of mandatory English education for primary school children starting from grade three (age eight or nine). English is also a key component of college admissions and matriculation in China, as it is one of three compulsory subjects in the National University Entrance Qualifying Exam along with Chinese and Mathematics. All university students must also pass Level 4 of a standardized English examination called the College English Test (CET4) to graduate from university. English proficiency is tied to employment opportunities and in some cases employees must pass the higher level of CET6 to advance to a better post. This increased emphasis on proficiency in English has generated a booming market for private English language schools and the development of private bilingual preschools and kindergartens that introduce English to children at the age of three or four. The English language market in China is the largest in the world, worth an estimated worth 4.5 billion USD with growth at a rate of 12-15% over the next two years.
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Statista
2019-2020 number of United States students studying in China =2,481
https://www.statista.com/statistics/372900/number-of-chinese-students-that-study-in-the-us/
2019-2020 number of Chinese students studying in the United States =372,900
https://www.statista.com/statistics/372900/number-of-chinese-students-that-study-in-the-us/
United States Students in China
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https://www.cnbc.com/2022/07/01/chinese-purchase-of-north-dakota-farmland-raises-national-security-concerns-in-washington.html
Chinese company’s purchase of North Dakota farmland raises national security concerns in Washington
PUBLISHED FRI, JUL 1 20229:55 AM EDT UPDATED FRI, JUL 1 20225:54 PM EDT
Eamon Javers
KEY POINTS
Chinese food manufacturer Fufeng Group bought 300 acres of land near Grand Forks, North Dakota, to set up a milling plant.
The project is located about 20 minutes from the Grand Forks Air Force Base, raising national security concerns.
Both the Democratic chairman and the Republican ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee told CNBC they are opposed to the project.
… when the three North Dakotans who owned the parcels of land here sold them for millions of dollars this spring, the transaction raised alarm bells as far away as Washington, D.C.
Grand Forks Air Force Base
That’s because the buyer of the land was a Chinese company, the Fufeng Group, based in Shandong, China, and the property is just about 20 minutes down the road from Grand Forks Air Force Base — home to some of the nation’s most sensitive military drone technology.
The base is also the home of a new space networking center, which a North Dakota senator said handles “the backbone of all U.S. military communications across the globe.”
Now for brief personal proselytizing comments for you to consider, if you choose.
Whether or not you believe in traditional American values, you might support people, such as the mostly Muslim, 12 million Uyghurs and 7 million Tibetans, living under China’s despotic control. If nothing else, I trust that almost all of you love your children and grandchildren, if you have any. I think that the Uyghurs, Tibetans, your children, and your grandchildren would be better off living in a world more American-like than China-like. Unfortunately, based on what I wrote here, the current odds strongly favor China’s surpassing the USA in power and influence.
In any case, I hope that whenever you are told something- political or non-political- that you instinctively view as emotion-charged you, at least temporarily, put the brakes on mindless, emotional preconceptions and engage your cognitive data-driven rationality before reaching your conclusions. More important, insights from this blogpost will serve you best if you find ways to apply them in your everyday life, such as in your interpersonal opinions.
