“The Washington Post” and “der Standard” have reported the 25th of march, that chinese hackers have tried to break into tibetan activist organisations networks and computers to steal encryption keys. Encryption keys are used to sign and encrypt electronic messages like E-Mails. China operates the world’s largest and most restrictive “Firewall” to censor internet communication and obscure information. Further it is known that in China a certain hacker group called “Titan Rain”, that is most probably financed and supported by the chinese government has been attacking the Pentagon and the german “chancelor house. Many tibetan organisations and activists notice a higher amount on suspect trojans and viruses. But thanks to the operation of Free Software such as the GNU/Linux operation system and Free Sowftware applications, such as GnuPG for encryption and the Tor Project for anonymous internet, the damage has been kept low.
I urge tibetan activists, journalists and news reporters to use encryption technology to secure and assure internet communication. To bypass the chinese firewall (e.g. to access the internet from Lhasa) it is most advisable to use Tor or similar anonymiser software. (see my blog post from the 18th of march 2008).
Wanna put the Tibetan Flag on your Cellphone? Here is an image in the right size for Ericsson Cellphones. (The image is licensed under the Wikipedia Gnu general public license. This means it’s Free, like “Free Tibet”).
“The Washington Post” and “der Standard” have reported today, that chinese hackers have tried to break into tibetan activist organisations networks and computers to steal encryption keys. Encryption keys are used to sign and encrypt electronic messages like E-Mails. China operates the world’s largest and most restrictive “Firewall” to censor internet communication and obscure information. Further it is known that in China a certain hacker group called “Titan Rain”, that is most probably financed and supported by the chinese government has been attacking the Pentagon and the german “chancelor house. Many tibetan organisations and activists notice a higher amount on suspect trojans and viruses. But thanks to the operation of Free Software such as the GNU/Linux operation system and Free Sowftware applications, such as GnuPG for encryption and the Tor Project for anonymous internet, the damage has been kept low.
I urge tibetan activists, journalists and news reporters to use encryption technology to secure and assure internet communication. To bypass the chinese firewall (e.g. to access the internet from Lhasa) it is most advisable to use Tor or similar anonymiser software. (see my blog post from the 18th of march 2008).
From 3rd to 25th March 2008 the 7th Session of the UN human rights council is taking place. Today some of the deligates have made remarks about the current situation in Tibet. And have challenged the chinese delegation to make a statement. Watch the live webcast on the UN-HRC website.
Human rights in China and the Beijing Olympics
As the clock ticks down to the start of the Beijing Olympics, Amnesty International is hopeful the event can create a positive human rights legacy for the people of China.
The Chinese government have promised action. Now the ball is in their court.
There are high expectations that the Games will spark improvements in China’s human rights record. When Beijing was chosen as the host city for the Games, both the Chinese authorities and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) spoke publicly of the “unique legacy” it would leave to China and to sport. This included progress in human rights.
Although there have been some positive changes since then, such as a reform of the death penalty system and greater reporting freedom for foreign journalists, these have been overshadowed by a deterioration in other areas.
The Games are being used as a justification to extend the use of detention without trial in Beijing as part of the city’s “clean-up” ahead of August 2008. Meanwhile, human rights activists are increasingly subjected to harassment, house arrest and unfair trials.
