Battle of the Mouse

[InfoSec News <isn () C4I ORG>]

Forwarded by: Ravi V Prasad <rvp () lycos com>

http://www.telegraphindia.com/editoria.htm#head5

It is gratifying that our defence forces have realized the important
role that information and communications technologies will play in
battles of the future and begun initiatives to train officers in
electronic warfare, command, control, communications and computers
intelligence. As General S. Padmanabhan is a former director general
of military intelligence, the integration of information warfare
technologies into our geopolitical, military and intelligence
strategies should get a boost.

For the last three decades, senior officers have been sent to the
Indian Institutes of Technology for masters programmes in engineering
and computer science. It is only now that the Military Intelligence
Training School and Depot in Pune has formulated a course specifically
on information warfare. In addition to C4I, techniques for obtaining
information from enemy computers and communications networks, as well
as counter-intelligence would be taught to officers. These functions
have traditionally been performed by civilian intelligence agencies
such as the Research and Analysis Wing and Aviation Research Center.
However, Kargil clearly indicated the lack of cooperation between
various civilian and military defence agencies.

Following the Pokhran blasts, Indias information infrastructure has
been repeatedly attacked by Pakistan-based and sponsored hackers
organizations, some of whom have links with pan-Islamic militant
organizations. But a senior Indian intelligence official claims:
Pakistans Inter-Services Intelligence does not have the expertise who
are among the worlds best, it is Chinas expertise in C4I which should
worry India. According to one expert in the United States, the country
which made the most thorough analysis of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organizations operations in the Balkans and the Persian Gulf is China.

Three senior generals of Chinas Peoples Liberation Army wrote an
influential treatise on bringing internet warfare into Chinas military
system. They quickly convinced Chinas political leaders that it could
achieve hegemony in Asia only by integrating information warfare into
its geopolitical strategies. China then established a special task
force on information warfare composed of senior politicians, military
officers and academics. To counter US influence in Asia, this task
force prepared a dissertation in which it advocated an electronic
Pearl Harbour to cripple US armed forces in Asia.

Detailed procedures were formulated for the PLA to develop an
all-conquering offensive technology to launch attacks and
countermeasures on the net, including information-paralysing software,
information-blocking software, and information-deception software;
software for network scanning, breaking codes, stealing data; and
taking anti-follow-up measures.

Experts at Pentagons long-range planning unit and the US foreign
policy council believe that Chinas C4I and internet warfare
capabilities are now almost as good as Natos. Another expert, Michael
Wilson, stated: PLA has successfully developed robust C4I networks for
battle space coordination; long range, reliable and secure data and
voice communications; surveillance and reconnaissance assets; and
global positioning data for manned and unmanned weapons system
navigation...China has deployed an advanced mobile communications
satellite that utilizes laser gyro guidance control systems, remote
measurement and telemetric technologies, and GPS technologies which
enable real-time tracking of mobile targets on the
battlefield.Although China developed the capabilities to counter US
influence in Asia, experts hold that it is India which is most at
risk.

PLA conducted several field exercises recently. Five hundred soldiers
simulated cyberattacks on Taiwan, India, Japan and South Korea in an
Informaticized peoples warfare network simulation exercise conducted
in the Hubei province. Ten functions were rehearsed in another
exercise in Xian: planting information mines; conducting information
reconnaissance; changing network data; releasing information bombs;
dumping information garbage; disseminating propaganda; applying
information deception; releasing clone information; organizing
information defence; and establishing network spy stations. In Datong,
40 PLA specialists are reportedly preparing methods of seizing control
of communications networks of Taiwan, India, Japan and South Korea.

In October, the Chinese chief of staff, General Fu Quanyou, presided
over an exercise which simulated electronic confrontation with
countries south and west of Gobi desert. This focussed on electronic
and counter reconnaissance, electronic interference and
counter-interference.

On the training front, PLA has a headstart over Indias MITSD, having
enlisted support from universities. PLA established the Communications
Command Academy in Hubei in collaboration with Hubeis engineering
universities. The Navy Engineering College, also in Wuhan, is
collaborating on secret internet warfare and C4I projects with
Communications Command Academy. PLA also established the Information
Engineering University, in Henan. It did this by taking over and
combining Henans civilian Institute of Information Engineering,
Electronic Technology College, and Survey and Mapping College. This
will specialize in remote image information engineering,
satellite-navigation and positioning engineering, and map data banks
of the regions from India to Indo-China.

PLA also established the Science and Engineering University by
combining the civilian Institute of Communications Engineering, the
Institute of the Engineering Corps, the Air Forces Meteorology
Institute, and the Research Institute of General Staff Headquarters.
Over 400 civilian professors from universities all over China are to
teach PLA officers electronic engineering, information engineering,
network engineering, and command automation engineering. Around 60
experts of Chinese origin settled in the West were persuaded to return
and work in the Institute of Computer and Command Automation. A fourth
PLA institute is the National Defense Science and Technology
University in Changsha where the Yin He series of supercomputers have
been developed. Three hundred colonels are currently undergoing
training here.

A saving grace for India is that Chinas combat troops are facing
difficulties in absorbing and operationalizing internet warfare and
C4I technologies. Wilson recounted: The reaction of officers to the
automated operations room was one of trepidation, as all labels,
displays, manuals and charts were in English. All operations-room
personnel had to undergo intensive English-language training in order
to operate and maintain the command systems. They found it very
difficult to break away from their past modes of command and thinking
as these required situational awareness far beyond their experience.

ISN is hosted by SecurityFocus.com
---
To unsubscribe email LISTSERV () SecurityFocus com with a message body of
"SIGNOFF ISN".