China might be using a suspected leak of personal information from the Eslite bookstore chain to wage cognitive warfare against Taiwanese, the Taiwan Statebuilding Party said yesterday.
Cynthia Yang (楊欣慈), deputy secretary-general of the Here I Stand Project, told a news conference in Taipei that she received a telephone call on Saturday night from a woman who said she worked at Eslite’s marketing department.
The woman asked Yang if she wanted to participate in an opinion survey the company is conducting among its customers.
Photo: Chen Yu-fu, Taipei Times
She also said that the book If China Attacks (阿共打來怎麼辦), which Yang bought from Eslite’s online site in February, contains “inappropriate” content.
Yang agreed to participate in the survey and prepared to record the conversation.
A man, who also identified himself as Eslite staff, but seemed to have an accent unlike Taiwanese, called 10 minutes later to conduct the survey, Yang said.
The man had no intention of concealing his position and said “the Chinese military’s capabilities are strong, so there is no way Taiwan can win a war,” Yang said.
He repeatedly said that “the US will not help,” “Taiwanese soldiers are afraid to fight,” “the Chinese Nationalist Party [KMT] is better” and “unification with Taiwan is inevitable,” she said.
The man also did not know that Taichung is a city in Taiwan, she added.
Yang said she told him that “people who bought the book will not be brainwashed by you.”
“This was not a scam call, but a call to wage cognitive warfare,” she told the news conference.
She asked how the callers knew what book she had purchased and demanded an explanation from Eslite.
Taiwan Statebuilding Party secretary-general Wang Hsing-huan (王興煥) said the personal information of Eslite customers might have been leaked and used by China to conduct cognitive warfare against Taiwan.
Information security is a national security issue, so the Ministry of Digital Affairs should shoulder the responsibility for this incident, he said.
China is using telephone polls to spread conspiracies and rumors, such as that the military is not strong enough to repel a Chinese attack, and that the KMT would bring peace while the Democratic Progressive Party would bring conflict, he said.
The government should take the issue seriously, as China is targeting specific Taiwanese with these calls, he said.
Wu Hsin-tai (吳欣岱), convener of the party’s Taipei chapter, urged government agencies to curb Chinese propaganda.
Eslite yesterday on its Web site said that it would continue to boost its information security and regularly provide reminders about fraud to its readers.
Additional reporting by Ling Mei-hsueh
The Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association has cautioned Japanese travelers to be vigilant against pickpockets at several popular tourist spots in Taiwan, including Taipei’s night markets, the Yongkang Street area, Zhongshan MRT Station, and Jiufen (九份) in New Taipei City. The advisory, titled “Recent Development of Concerns,” was posted on the association’s Web site under its safety and emergency report section. It urges travelers to keep backpacks fully zipped and carried in front, with valuables placed at the bottom of the bag. Visitors are advised to be especially mindful of their belongings when taking photos or speaking on the phone, avoid storing wallets and
ENDORSING TAIWAN: Honduran presidential candidate Nasry Afura said that Honduras was ‘100 times better off’ when it was allied with Taipei The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday said it would explore the possibility of restoring diplomatic relations with Honduras based on the principle of maintaining national interests and dignity. The ministry made the remarks in response to reporters’ questions regarding an article titled: “Will Taiwan Regain a Diplomatic Ally?” published in The Diplomat on Saturday. The article said Honduras’ presidential election in November could offer Taiwan the chance to regain an ally, as multiple candidates have promoted re-establishing diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Honduras severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan in March 2023 in favor of Beijing, but since switching its diplomatic recognition,
A fourth public debate was held today about restarting the recently decommissioned Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant, ahead of a referendum on the controversial issue to be held in less than two weeks. A referendum on Aug. 23 is to ask voters if they agree that “the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant should continue operations upon approval by the competent authority and confirmation that there are no safety concerns.” Anyone over 18 years of age can vote in the referendum. The vote comes just three months after its final reactor shut down, officially making Taiwan nuclear-free. Taiwan People’s Party Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) represented
Scoot announced yesterday that starting in October, it would increase flights between Taipei and Japan’s Narita airport and Hokkaido, and between Singapore and Taipei. The low-cost airline, a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines, also said it would launch flights to Chiang Rai in Thailand, Okinawa and Tokyo’s Haneda airport between December and March next year. Flights between Singapore and Chiang Rai would begin on Jan. 1, with five flights per week operated by an Embraer E190-E2 aircraft, Scoot said. Flights between Singapore and Okinawa would begin on Dec. 15, with three flights per week operated by Airbus A320 aircraft, the airline said. Services between Singapore
RSS