Although it may seem like a long time ago, the Chinese spy balloon floating over America’s most sensitive military sites happened in February of this year. We never got any real answers from the Department of Defense or our intelligence agencies about what that was all about. Here’s a quote from a June BBC article, Chinese spy balloon did not collect information, says Pentagon
“Pentagon spokesperson Brigadier General Pat Ryder said on Thursday that the US was “aware that [the balloon] had intelligence collection capabilities”.
But “it has been our assessment now that it did not collect while it was transiting the United States or over flying the United States”.
He said the efforts the US took to mitigate any intelligence gathering “contributed” to the balloon’s failure to gather sensitive information.”
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-66062562
So, then last night, I came across this NYT article: U.S. Hunts Chinese Malware That Could Disrupt American Military Operations. This report, if true, is so alarming that I wonder how on earth the Pentagon could be downplaying that Chinese spy balloon incident in June, when this NYT’s article states:
“The Biden administration is hunting for malicious computer code it believes China has hidden deep inside the networks controlling power grids, communications systems and water supplies that feed military bases in the United States and around the world, according to American military, intelligence and national security officials.
The discovery of the malware has raised fears that Chinese hackers, probably working for the People’s Liberation Army, have inserted code designed to disrupt U.S. military operations in the event of a conflict, including if Beijing moves against Taiwan in coming years.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/29/us/politics/china-malware-us-military-bases-taiwan.html
The NYT’s article mentions concerns were raised in May and the BBC article is dated June 30th and states the Pentagon spokesperson gave the Chines spy balloon update on Thursday, which would have been June 29th. Timelines always matter. Back to the NYT’s report: “The first public hints of the malware campaign began to emerge in late May, when Microsoft said it had detected mysterious computer code in telecommunications systems in Guam, the Pacific island with a vast American air base, and elsewhere in the United States.” So, a month after the first public hints of the malware began, the Pentagon was still busy trying to save face on the Feb. Chinese spy balloon fiasco, which took the President a week to take decisive action and shoot down that balloon, as it was done traversing the continental US and heading out over the Atlantic Ocean…
Further into the NYT report: “More than a dozen U.S. officials and industry experts said in interviews over the past two months that the Chinese effort goes far beyond telecommunications systems and predated the May report by at least a year.” (my highlight there). So, if this is true, our government knew about the Chinese malware efforts for at least a year and yet, they were hesitant to shoot down a Chinese spy balloon hovering over our most sensitive military sites for a week?
In April there was a NBC report: Chinese spy balloon gathered intelligence from sensitive U.S. military sites, despite U.S. efforts to block it. Here’s a bit from this NBC report:
“The Chinese spy balloon that flew across the U.S. was able to gather intelligence from several sensitive American military sites, despite the Biden administration’s efforts to block it from doing so, according to two current senior U.S. officials and one former senior administration official.”
“China was able to control the balloon so it could make multiple passes over some of the sites (at times flying figure-eight formations) and transmit the information it collected back to Beijing in real time, the three officials said. The intelligence China collected was mostly from electronic signals, which can be picked up from weapons systems or include communications from base personnel, rather than images, the officials said.
The three officials said China could have gathered much more intelligence from sensitive sites if not for the administration’s efforts to move around potential targets and obscure the balloon’s ability to pick up their electronic signals by stopping them from broadcasting or emitting signals.”
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/china-spy-balloon-collected-intelligence-us-military-bases-rcna77155
So, my understanding thus far is that our officials knew about some buried Chinese malware threat while the Chinese spy balloon was hovering over our most sensitive sites and top generals were assuring us there was no “kinetic threat” from this Chinese spy balloon… they knew about this Chinese buried malware threat that could potentially disrupt our grid, critical infrastructure and disrupt our military’s ability to function. Doing Biden political damage control outweighed national security, is how I see it.
Here are some other stories about the Chinese malware threat, but to be clear these reports are quoting the NYT’s report – not independently corroborated:
Forbes – Chinese Malware Could Cut Power To U.S. Military Bases, Businesses And Homes, Report Claims
CNN – New York Times: US officials search for hidden Chinese malware that could affect military operations
FOX News – Biden administration searching for Chinese malware with potential to disrupt military: Report
libertybelle diaries 