China attempted to flood online forums with negative and misleading information about the Han Kuang exercises, the Ministry of National Defense communications division said yesterday.
The comments were discovered and removed before they could have any effect, the division said.
The military has been widely praised for its performance during this year’s exercises, which likely caught the attention of hackers working for the Chinese government, the report said.
One military official, who declined to be named, said that Russian is adept at the strategy of using online posts to influence public sentiment, citing the conflict in the Ukraine and elections in France and Germany.
Chinese hackers used the strategy late last year when fake photographs showing Chinese jets flying over Yushan (玉山) were posted online, the official said.
The cyberattacks clearly demonstrate the challenge of maintaining a secure online environment and the National Security Bureau needs to be aware of the issue, the official said.
The five-day Han Kuang exercises ended on Friday.
The military’s media outlets posted video clips daily, as it has done during the exercises for several years.
This year’s use of panoramic photographs and aerial shots proved especially popular with online visitors, the official said, adding that these posts in particular were targeted by China’s hackers.
Minister of National Defense Feng Shih-kuan (馮世寬) praised the military’s media outlets and the Voice of Han Broadcasting Network, for their quick updates during the Han Kuang exercises.
The outlets also did a good job of handling the cyberattacks, Feng said.
The attacks came from anonymous users and appeared to be aimed at deflating officers’ morale, he said.
When such propaganda first began online, it was clearly from non-Taiwanese users, as the language was inconsistent with local usage. Later, Chinese hackers learned to imitate Taiwanese and demonstrated strong familiarity with local issues.
The efforts made to imitate Taiwanese users indicate the importance the Chinese place on influencing local public opinion.
Military media outlets’ family-themed videos, such as a series it made for Mother’s Day titled Steel Wife, also came under attack from hackers, the official said.
“No military countermeasures are needed. The public attack the hackers on their own — like a defense ministry of the people,” the official said.
However, the military is actively dealing with hackers through various countermeasures, the official said, adding that it “goes to battle every day.”
“Taiwan is fortunate to be a democracy with such free access to information. Although it is hard to manage at times, the public is getting better at distinguishing real posts from fake ones,” officials said.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by