US mounts sneaky cyberattack, while crying foul

Blaming others for what it is doing furtively has been a common practice of the United States, and perhaps that is because Washington is familiar with the underlying trickery.

The recent scandal－cyberattack tools deployed by the National Security Agency－is the latest example of the US' wicked acts.

Last week, Chinese internet security firm 360 released details of the QUANTUM attack system, a platform believed to be the NSA's most powerful cyberattack tool.

The revelations came amid Washington's increasing accusations against China of so-called cyberattack and cyber espionage, without one bit of substantial evidence.

In contrast, the 360 report is quite extensive and well-founded. It detailed step by step how the US intelligence agency unleashed cyber assaults, listing specific components of this sophisticated tool with code names such as QUANTUMSERT, QUANTUMBOT, QUANTUMBISCUIT and QUANTUMPHANTOM.

According to the report, indiscriminate hacking was being carried out and internet traffic of users everywhere was hijacked, including users of sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Amazon, as well as China's instant messaging platform QQ.

This is the second time this month that a Chinese cybersecurity firm has warned against the NSA's cyberattacks, which have targeted nearly 50 countries and regions worldwide, including China, for more than a decade.

The NSA's espionage program is nothing new. In 2013, investigative reports by German news outlet Der Spiegel revealed that the US had placed bugs in the European Union representation in Washington, and infiltrated the computer network of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries using the "Quantum Insert" method. And when exposed, the US plays its usual trick of "thief crying 'stop thief'".

US cyberattacks against China have gravely endangered the security of China's key infrastructure and a large amount of personal data and commercial and technological secrets, seriously undermining the mutual trust between China and the US in cyberspace.

As an old Chinese saying goes, "do unto others as you would have them do unto you". At the very least, one should refrain from harming others while leveling false allegations.

Xinhua