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One giant hacker?

The LA Times reports in "China's computer hacking worries Pentagon":

"China in the last year has developed ways to infiltrate and manipulate computer networks around the world in what U.S. defense officials conclude is a new and potentially dangerous military capability, according to a Pentagon report issued Monday.

Computer network intrusions at the Pentagon and other U.S. agencies, think tanks and government contractors last year "appeared to originate" in China, according to the report.

In addition, computer intrusions in Germany, apparently by Chinese hackers, occur daily, along with infiltrations in France and Britain, the Pentagon said. Last year, British intelligence officials alerted financial institutions across the country that they were targets of "state-sponsored computer network exploitation" from China.

The Pentagon report does not directly accuse the Chinese military or government of the attacks but says the incidents are consistent with recent military thinking in that country. David Sedney, deputy assistant secretary of Defense for East Asia, said cyber-warfare was an area of growing concern and he called on the Chinese to clarify their intentions.

"The techniques that are used, the way these intrusions are conducted, are certainly very consistent with what you would need if you were going to actually carry out cyber-warfare, and the kinds of activities that are carried out are consistent with a lot of writings we see from Chinese military and Chinese military theorists," Sedney said".

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