Canadian researchers at the University of Toronto have said a network based in China stole Indian military secrets and hacked the Dalai Lama’s office as part of a worldwide scheme.
The researches have said they have observed a “complex ecosystem of cyber espionage that systematically compromised government, business, academic and other computer networks in India, the offices of the Dalai Lama, the United Nations, and several other countries.”
The researchers said data stolen from hacked computers in India contained sensitive information. The researchers’ “Shadows in the Cloud” report shows how certain documents were accessed.
“We recovered one document that appears to be an encrypted diplomatic correspondence, two documents classified as ‘Secret’, six as ‘Restricted’ and five as ‘Confidential’,” one researcher said at a press conference.
“[The attacks] suggest to us a shift is occurring from criminal and industrial espionage in cyberspace to a possibility of political espionage, whether that is directed by government or not.”
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
