Citing the persistent threat and recent massive cyberattacks launched by hackers based in China against Taiwanese Web sites and databases, pan-green lawmakers yesterday said they plan to table a motion to forbid government agencies from purchasing Chinese-made information technology (IT) products and software.
“China has been using its national brands of IT devices to breach online security and intrude into other countries. The proliferation of these incidents is alarming. The US, the UK and other Western countries are very much troubled by these cyberattacks,” Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) said yesterday, adding that he and his colleagues will propose the act in the coming days.
“Taiwan is among the countries under the most frequent attack by Chinese hackers. We should learn from the US government, to ban all purchasing of Chinese-made IT and telecommunications products. This is necessary to maintain our national security and protection of our information systems,” he added.
In September last year, the US House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence issued a warning in a report advising US companies to refrain from doing business with China’s two leading IT firms — Huawei Technologies Ltd (華為) and ZTE Corp (中興) — because they pose a national security threat to the US due to the firms’ close ties with the Chinese government. The report recommended that US government computer systems not include any components from these two firms because that could pose an espionage risk.
On Tuesday, US President Barack Obama signed a spending bill that blocked government buying of IT equipment from firms “owned, directed or subsidized” by China.
The bill prevents NASA, the National Science Foundation and the US justice and commerce departments from buying IT systems unless US federal law enforcement officials give their approval.
Chen said that cyberattacks by hackers based in China have become a major problem worldwide, raising questions regarding the wisdom of using Chinese-made IT and telecommunications products.
The DPP lawmakers’ planned bill came amid recent confirmation by the National Security Bureau (NSB) that cyberattacks targeting Taiwanese Web sites by Chinese hackers have grown more serious than ever and threaten the nation’s military security, as well as its high-tech and commercial sectors.
NSB Director Tsai Der-sheng (蔡得勝) told legislators last week that the bureau’s Web site came under attack by hackers more than 3.34 million times last year, an average of about 10,000 attacks a day.
The legislature’s Foreign and National Defense Committee in October last year adopted a resolution requesting the NSB, in conjunction with the Ministry of National Defense and affiliated agencies, to conduct a comprehensive review on types of key national infrastructure projects that should be placed under restrictions barring participation by Chinese firms or Chinese capital and to table the report by May.
BAIL APPEALS: The former vice premier was ordered to be held incommunicado despite twice being granted bail and paying a total of NT$12 million in bond The Taoyuan District Court yesterday ordered the detention of former vice premier Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦), who is being investigated for alleged corruption while serving as Taoyuan mayor from December 2014 to December 2022, and that he be held incommunicado. The court made the ruling during a bail hearing after prosecutors appealed its bail ruling twice. Cheng on Saturday was released after posting bail of NT$5 million (US$153,818). However, after prosecutors lodged an appeal, the High Court on Monday revoked the original ruling and ordered the Taoyuan District Court to hold another bail hearing. On Tuesday, the district court granted bail to Cheng a second
The Thai government on Friday announced that Taiwanese would be allowed to stay in the country for up to 60 days per entry, under the Southeast Asian country’s visa-free program starting from today. Taiwan is among 93 countries included in the Thai visa-waiver program, which has been expanded from 57 countries, with the visa-exempt entry extended from 30 to 60 days. After taking office last year, Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has vowed to grant more visa waivers to foreign travelers as part of efforts to stimulate tourism. The expanded visa-waiver program was on Friday signed by Thai Minister of the Interior Anutin
PEACE AND SECURITY: China’s military ambitions present ‘the greatest strategic challenge to Japan and the world, Japan’s annual defense white paper said yesterday Japan yesterday warned that China risked escalating tensions with Taiwan with an increase in military exercises that appeared aimed in part at readying Beijing’s forces for a possible invasion. Japan’s annual assessment of security threats, including those posed by China, North Korea and Russia, comes as Taiwan closely monitors Chinese People’s Liberation Army air and sea exercises, including one with the Shandong aircraft carrier in the Pacific Ocean. The drills are the latest in a series including maneuvers in the Taiwan Strait last year that a senior US general said would be key to any invasion. “Because of that increase in military activity,
HAN KUANG: The exercises, which are to run from July 22 to 26, will feature unscripted war games and a decentralized command and control structure, military officers said The armed forces would for the first time test new rules of engagement (ROE) at this month’s annual Han Kuang exercises, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said yesterday. The exercises, which are to run from July 22 to 26, will feature unscripted war games, and a decentralized command and control structure, military officers told a news conference in Taipei. ROE cards would be issued to select combat troops to test their ability to function without tight control, they said. The most recent edition of the rules was published last year, they said. One of the cards’ two templates identifies enemy targets that soldiers