Cyber espionage -- L-ispjunaġġ ċibernetiku

 

Spying is an activity in which personal, commercial or military rivals snoop on their adversaries or enemies to gain knowledge on what might be being said or done behind closed doors.  The activity is considered a success if the intelligence that is being sought is in fact achieved, and the success is bigger if the act of spying is now known by the target.

 

Apart from traditional methods where one can hide somewhere and observe what is going on, reading letters and messages surreptitiously, taking photos and videos covertly from a distance and so on, today we also have the surveillance of means of communications like the telephone, emails, the internet and automated control systems.  The latter kind of surveillance is called cybernetic, and apart from leading to knowledge can also lead to strategic sabotage of important assets to an enemy.

 

In the last few days, there was a clear example of this activity when the American President Donald Trump was reported to have approved a cybernetic attack leading to the disruption of Iranian computers used in the control of missile launchers and military rockets.1  This was in response to the downing of a US drone by the Iranians who declared it had entered into their territory.

 

Iran is not the first time to have suffered such an attack.  You might remember some years ago, it had been affected by a virus called Stuxnet which had infected and destroyed centrifuges that were used to refine uranium, in the country’s nuclear program which they declared had civilian use, but which other countries suspected had military objectives.  This attack was a joint project by the United States and Israel.2

 

One can compare this activity with the accusations started by the United States and accepted by other countries including Australia, that the use of equipment by the Chinese company Huawei in the countries’ telecommunications networks would be a threat to national security.  It is clear that this accusation, irrespective of whether based on reality or otherwise, is clearly not based on a moral argument.

 

When the US staes it does not want to use Huawei equipment in the country’s networks and its allies, it does not say this because cyber espionage is inherently a bad thing and should be condemned, but because it wishes that espionage can only be undertaken by the United States.  In other words, the US thinks it has an edge in this space, and wants to keep it.

 

Another example of this mentality is evident in the trade war currently under way between the US and China.  President Trump was the first to impose new import tariffs on products coming in from China, and after some time had increased them.  Each time he did so he also, tongue in cheek, advised his adversaries not to retaliate.3

 

In other words, it is only Trump that thinks he has the right to slap others in the face.  For a person who goes to such lengths to enamour himself to the Christian voters in his country, I’m surprised that when addressing comments to the Iranians and the Chinese he does not quote Matthew 5:39 to them, so that after Trump slaps them in their right cheek, they might turn him the left one.  Yeah, right!

 

It’s been clear for years that the big bears in international politics are investing, heavily, in this area, and have no intention of advertising what capabilities they have been able to amass, even less so where they had been able to infiltrate.  It seems to me that the fear that a country can be spied upon or sabotaged by new systems of technology are well justified, but is not limited to adversaries that one might know about and acknowledge today.

 

I’m also concerned about similar capabilities by those that today one might consider and look upon as friends, even allies, and therefore be prepared to trust more, or completely, so much that perhaps precautions that one might take in other situations might be in fact overlooked.

 

It is not out of the realms of possibility for a country to change leaders, change its domestic or international policy, and suddenly you might realised over a period of time that friendship has declined, trust diminished and you might ask whether the common values and interests you once had are still so.  Where would you start if you need to review whether your erstwhile friends are now spying on each other, or worse?

 

I think that precautions in this space need to be taken everywhere systems are not built by persons or organisations that a country has full control over, regardless of their provenance.  This is becoming more and more difficult when products and services are no longer viable to be originated in your own country, and therefore a whole industry closes and nothing can be done except import more and more.  Countries that do not recognise the importance of looking after or developing indigenous industries, and don’t recognise the potential impact on national security of this, might  sorely regret this in future due to some unexpectedly bitter experience.

 

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L-ispjunaġġ huwa attività li biha rivali personali, kummerċjali jew militari jitkixxfu fuq l-avversarji jew għedewwa tagħhom biex isiru jafu dak li jkunu qiegħdin jgħidu jew jagħmlu minn wara l-kwinti.  L-attività titqies suċċess jekk l-intelliġenza li tiġi qed tiġi mfittxija tkun fil-fatt miksuba, u suċċess ikbar jekk l-att ta’ spjunaġġ ikun mhux magħruf minn dak li huwa l-mira.

 

Apparti l-metodi tradizzjonali fejn wieħed jistaħba x’imkien u josserva xi jkun qed jiġri, il-qari ta’ ittri u messaġġi miktuba, u t-teħid bil-moħbi u mill-bogħod ta’ ritratti u vidjows, u illum insibu wkoll is-sorvelja tal-mezzi tal-komunikazzjoni tat-telefon, il-messaġġi elettroniċi u l-apparat ta’ komunikazzjoni u ta’ kontroll awtomatiku.  L-istudju ta’ dawn tal-aħħar jissejjeħ ċibernetiku, u apparti li jwassal għal sorveljanza diskreta jista’ wkoll iwassal għal sabutaġġ strateġiku ta’ apparat importanti tal-għadu.

 

F’dawn l-aħħar jiem, kien hemm eżempju ċar ta’ din l-attività meta l-President Amerikan Donald Trump ġie rrappurtat li approva attakk ċibernetiku li wassal għal twaqqif ta’ kompjuters Iranjani li jintużaw biex jikkontrollaw it-tfigħ ta’ missili u rokits militari.1  Dan kien b’risposta għat-twaqqigħ ta’ ajruplan Amerikan ta’ sorveljanza mingħajr pilota (drone) mill-Iranjani li stqarrew li kien daħal fit-territorju tagħhom.

 

L-Iran mhux l-ewwel darba li kienet intlaqtet minn attakk simili.  Forsi tiftakru ftit snin ilu, kien affettwat minn virus imsejjaħ Stuxnet li kien infetta u qered l-magni ċentrifruġjali li kien juża biex jirfina l-uranju, fil-programm nukleari tal-pajjiż li huma jistqarru li għandu skop ċivili, imma li pajjiżi oħrajn jissuspettaw li kellu għanijiet militari.  Dan l-attakk kien proġett fi sħubija bejn l-Istati Uniti u l-Israel.2

 

Wieħed jista’ jqabbel dan l-aġir mal-akkużi mibdijin mill-Istati Uniti u aċċettati minn xi pajjiżi oħra inkluża l-Awstralja, li l-użu ta’ apparat mill-kumpannija Ċiniża Huawei fin-netwerks tat-telekomunikazzjoni fil-pajjiż ikun theddida għas-sigurtà nazzjonali.  Huwa ċar li din l-akkuża, irrispettivament jekk hix fundata fuq il-verità jew le, żgur li mhix ibbażata fuq argument morali.

 

Meta l-Istati Uniti tgħid li ma tridx li jintuża apparat tal-Huawei fin-netwerks tal-pajjiż u tal-allejati tagħha, ma tgħidx dan għax l-ispjunaġġ ċibernetiku huwa minnu nnifsu ħażin u ta’ min jistmerru, imma għax tixtieq li l-ispjunaġġ ikun jista’ jsir biss mill-Istati Uniti.  Fi kliem ieħor, l-Istati Uniti jidhrilha li għandha vantaġġ f’dan il-qasam, u trid li żżommu.

 

Eżempju ieħor ta’ din il-mentalità hija evidenti fil-gwerra kummerċjali li bħalissa qiegħda sseħħ bejn l-Istati Uniti u ċ-Ċina.  Il-President Trump kien l-ewwel wieħed li impona dazji ġodda fuq prodotti ġejjin miċ-Ċina, u wkoll li wara xi żmien żiedhom.  Kull darba li għamel dan, kien b’wiċċu minn quddiem javża lill-avversarji tiegħu biex ma jirritaljawx.3

 

Fi kliem ieħor, Trump biss jaħseb li għandu dritt li jagħti d-daqqiet fil-wiċċ.  Għal bniedem li jitħabat tant biex jintgħoġob mill-votanti Nsara fil-pajjiż, niskanta kif meta jkun qed jindirizza lill-Iranjani u ċ-Ċiniżi ma jikkwotalhomx lil Mattew 5:39, biex wara li Trump itihom bil-ħarta fuq il-ħadd tal-lemin, idawrulu l-ħadd tax-xellug.  Mhux hekk nibqgħu!

 

Ilu snin ċar li l-qawwiet il-kbar fil-politika internazzjonali qiegħdin jinvestu, u bil-kbir, f’dan il-qasam, u mhumiex se jmorru javżaw l-għassa x’kienu kapaċi jiżviluppaw, u inqas u inqas fejn kien irnexxielhom jiddeffsu.  Jien jidhirli li l-biża’ li pajjiż jista’ jiġi spjunat jew sabutaġġat minn sistemi ġodda tat-teknoloġija hija ġustifikata, imma mhix limitata biss għall-avversarji li wieħed jaf bihom u jirrikonoxxi llum.

 

Jien nibża’ wkoll minn kapaċitajiet simili minn dawk li llum wieħed iqishom u jħares lejhom bħala ħbieb, jew anke allejati, u li għalhekk wieħed jafdahom iktar, jew kompletament, tant li forsi prekawzjonijiet li jittieħdu f’sitwazzjonijiet oħra fil-fatt ma jittiħdux.

 

Xejn ma trid biex pajjiż jibdel it-tmexxija tiegħu, jibdel il-politika tiegħu domestika jew internazzjonali, u f’daqqa waħda tinduna li fuq medda ta’ żmien il-ħbiberija naqset, il-fiduċja kesħet, u tibda tistaqsi jekk il-valuri u l-interessi taż-żewġ naħat fil-fatt għadhomx jaqblu.  Minn fejn se tibda jekk tkun trid tirrevedi jekk il-ħbieb fil-fatt kinux qed jispjunaw fuq xulxin, jew agħar?

 

Jien naħseb li prekawzjonijiet f’dan il-qasam iridu jittieħdu kull fejn jintmessu sistemi mhux mibnijin minn persuni u organizzazzjonijiet li pajjiż għandu kontroll sħiħ fuqhom, jiġu minn fejn jiġu.  Dan qed isir iktar u iktar diffiċli meta servizzi u prodotti ma jibqgħux vijabbli li jsiru minn pajjiż, u għalhekk industrija sħiħa tagħlaq u ma jista’ jsir xejn ħlief li jiġi impurtat iktar u iktar.  Il-pajjiżi li m’għarfux l-importanza li jiġu mħarsa jew żviluppati industriji indiġeni, u m’għarfux l-impatt potenzjali fuq is-sigurtà nazzjonali ta’ dan, jistgħu jiddispjaċihom bil-kbir ‘il quddiem b’xi esperjenza qarsa fejn wieħed ma kienx qed jistenniha.

 

 

 

1https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/with-trumps-approval-pentagon-launched-cyber-strikes-against-iran/2019/06/22/250d3740-950d-11e9-b570-6416efdc0803_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.335f6ff8c033, retrieved 26/6/2019

2https://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/06/01/stuxnet_joint_us_israeli_op/, retrieved 26/6/2019

3https://www.politico.com/story/2019/05/13/trump-china-tariffs-trade-war-1317772, retrieved 26/6/2019

1https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/with-trumps-approval-pentagon-launched-cyber-strikes-against-iran/2019/06/22/250d3740-950d-11e9-b570-6416efdc0803_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.335f6ff8c033, retrieved 26/6/2019

2https://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/06/01/stuxnet_joint_us_israeli_op/, retrieved 26/6/2019

3https://www.politico.com/story/2019/05/13/trump-china-tariffs-trade-war-1317772, retrieved 26/6/2019