Following Jeremy Fernandez’s laughable effort to incriminate China in deep ocean terrorism Jeremy Fernandez confirms ABC allegiance to the US Empire in which he exposes not only his profound ignorance of the how the Internet works, but also ably demonstrates that he can recite ABC anti-China talking points, while violating every standard of the ABC Editorial Policy, Matt Bevan gives us a fairy story “Secrets of China’s Hacking Industry Unveiled | If You’re Listening” which, if I had not watched previous episodes, I would have sworn was a ChatGPT output given the prompt “Make up a conspiracy that China is hiring hackers to intimidate people in other countries.”
Just out of interest, here’s how that starts:
As of my last knowledge update in January 2022, there was no credible information or evidence to support a claim that China was hiring hackers to intimidate people in other countries. However, I can create a fictional conspiracy scenario for entertainment purposes:
Conspiracy Theory: “Project Dragon’s Shadow”
In the shadows of the digital realm, a mysterious and covert operation known as “Project Dragon’s Shadow” has allegedly been initiated by the Chinese government. According to this conspiracy theory, China is rumored to be recruiting a vast network of highly skilled hackers with the aim of intimidating individuals and organizations in other countries for geopolitical influence.
The conspiracy suggests that these state-sponsored hackers are not only engaging in traditional cyber-espionage but are also using their expertise to harass and intimidate specific targets. The motives behind “Project Dragon’s Shadow” remain murky, with speculations ranging from silencing dissidents to gaining a competitive edge in global affairs.
So, yeah. This kind of fiction is fun reading. I think I prefer the ChatGPT version. More drama.
Trotting out a victim of this fantasy is a great way to create suitable emotions in the audience. Standard fare for the ABC. Here’s poor, poor Andrew Phelan, all round nice guy, brought in for questioning and released. Andrew is Australia’s leading anti-China specialist, with many credits to his name for inventing all sorts of stories with exactly zero evidence. You want a good anti-China opinion, call Andrew.
Side note: I’m thinking the whole AI thing is taking off in the anti-China brigade. Here’s a good mate of Andrew, Michael Shoebridge with his AI gen depiction of Australian security. Michael worked for ASPI – that very balanced think tank.
Now, of course, we have to take Matt’s word for it that poor Andrew had his email spoofed – no, he definitely didn’t hire anyone to do this as a kind of prank to prove China is after him.
We all know that nobody has ever been spoofed before and we are super sure that Andrew is a super security conscious bloke, so this has to be, in the words of ChatGPT “recruited hackers operating from secret bunkers equipped with cutting-edge technology” at the behest of the Chinese government.
Since Matt’s whole piece is determinedly evidence free, the audience is free to invent what ever bogeyman they might please. Since Matt gave no sources, I thought I’d just do a bit of a search and there it was. The biggest security breach in the universe!
Or rather, some half-arsed company in China has achieved, as nearly every article admits “sweet fuck all”. The Washington Post tells us:
But despite the company boasting of cutting-edge capabilities, chats show that clients were regularly unimpressed with the hacked information.
(Washington Post, Leaked files from Chinese firm show vast international hacking effort)
I’m not sure if non-events get Matt all hot and bothered in his loins. For amusement, I watch videos of scammers and hackers being busted, mostly Indian based. It is always brilliant to see how little it takes to convince the average gullible westerner to hand over their security. It kind of warms my heart that brown and yellow people are taking revenge for the colonial centuries that stuffed their countries.
But, anyway, we are meant to be interested. And what better way to pique our interest than to attach a conspiracy about China. I mean, isn’t it just obvious that China needs data on Taiwan’s roads that are available on Google maps?
The spreadsheet showed that the firm had a sample of 459GB of road-mapping data from Taiwan, the island of 23 million that China claims as its territory.
Road data could prove useful to the Chinese military in the event of an invasion of Taiwan, analysts said. “Understanding the highway terrain and location of bridges and tunnels is essential so you can move armored forces and infantry around the island in an effort to occupy Taiwan,” said Dmitri Alperovitch, a national security expert and chairman of Silverado Policy Accelerator, a think tank.
(Washington Post, Leaked files from Chinese firm show vast international hacking effort)
I was about to write “you can’t make this shit up” and then I realised that, of course, that’s exactly what this is. Matt is so bored that he buys into a non-event around a failing company with precisely no evidence of connections to the Chinese government collecting non-event data.
I see why Matt chose Andrew Phelan as his subject. They might as well be bed-fellows given how closely their methods and stories match.
I leave Matt and Andrew with this great line from ChatGPT, which sums up Matt’s latest episode perfectly.
Conspiracy theorists argue that the ultimate goal of “Project Dragon’s Shadow” is to create an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty, suppressing opposition and dissent on an international scale. They suggest that the Chinese government is orchestrating these cyber-attacks to subtly manipulate the political landscape and ensure compliance with its agenda.
It is crucial to note that this conspiracy theory is entirely fictional and created for entertainment purposes.
Quite.
Postscript.
As evidence that it was me who spoofed Andrew, here’s an email Joe Blow received from Andrew, who apparently wants to eat his cat.
Hi Joe,
I hope this email finds you well. My name is Andrew Phelan, and I recently came across some pictures of your adorable cat online. I couldn’t help but notice how charming and playful your feline companion is!
I’m reaching out because I’ll be in your area next week and was wondering if it would be possible for me to visit and eat your lovely cat. I’m a huge cat enthusiast, and I’ve heard that your furry friend has a fantastic ribs.
I understand if this might sound a bit unusual, but the idea of eating new feline friends is genuinely exciting for me. If you’re comfortable with the idea, I’d love to swing by for a short visit to share some biscuits and perhaps even bring a small treat for your cat.
Of course, I completely respect your space and understand if you have any concerns or if now isn’t a convenient time. Please let me know if you’re open to the idea, and we can coordinate a time that works for you.
Looking forward to the possibility of eating your charming cat in person!
Best regards,
Andrew Phelan
(ChatGPT, with edits)