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Is China Creating the World's Largest Botnet Army?

Posted by timothy on from the economies-of-scale dept.

david_a_eaves writes "The Chinese government is mandating that all computers sold in China come with Internet blocking software. Rob Cottingham writes an excellent piece noting how the censorship application of this software should be the least of our concerns. This new software may create an opportunity for the Chinese Government to appropriate these computers and use them to create the worlds largest botnet army." Update: 06/11 21:26 GMT by T : J. Alex Halderman writes "My students and I have been examining the Green Dam censorware software. We've found serious vulnerabilities that can be exploited by any web site a user visits with the software installed. We also found that some of the blacklists seems to have been taken from the American-made filtering program CyberSitter. We've posted a report and demo."

17 of 195 comments (clear)

  1. oOooo Scary! by vancondo · · Score: 5, Funny

    Well if they are it's certainly more threatening than a bunch of terracotta warriors.
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    - - VanCondo

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  2. Does America already have the World's Largest? by CmdrSammo · · Score: 5, Funny

    Obama: Hey Ballmer, you mind if we borrow 90% of the world's computers for a quick cyber war?

    Ballmer: Finally, the moment I've been waiting for! *Throws ceremonial war chair at wall*

    1. Re:Does America already have the World's Largest? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      Ballmer: Sure, you have have them after Tuesday, five months from now.

  3. That would be like... by starglider29a · · Score: 5, Funny

    A few million Stormtroopers standing on the surface of the Death Star with ThinkGeek green lasers.

    Archimedes would be proud!


    (Think before you mod me offtopic.)

    1. Re:That would be like... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      I modded you off topic. As the post above me says... This is Slashdot. No thinking goes on here.

  4. It is a problem by Lead+Butthead · · Score: 3, Funny

    For the sake of argument, let's assume this is the case. (And to correct me if I am wrong here.) To be able to block, at the very least the packet header has to be examined. If remote attacker can generate packets faster than you can examine and drop them, you've just been DoS'ed. Multiply the number of packets by the number of computers in China...

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    ELOI, ELOI, LAMA SABACHTHANI!?
  5. The "least of our worries" ? by qoncept · · Score: 4, Funny

    Let me get this straight.

    China further on intruding on its citizens who are already exploited and given no voice is a valid concern -- until it causes the rest of the world the slightest discomfort?

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    Whale
    1. Re:The "least of our worries" ? by Stargoat · · Score: 4, Funny

      Let me get this straight.

      China further on intruding on its citizens who are already exploited and given no voice is a valid concern -- until it causes the rest of the world the slightest discomfort?

      And what exactly would you have the rest of the world do about it? Chinese are already subject to an oppressive dictatorial government, as are North Koreans, Vietnamese, Cubans, Laotians, Burmese, Iranians, Zimbabweans, and in general around half the total world population.

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      Hoist Number One and Number Six.
  6. Re:Is this a problem? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    How is this troll? Did this guy beat a mod in an earlier slashdot debate?

  7. Re:Correct me if I am wrong... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    And what this article doesn't say is that we can create the botnet ourselves! Are you telling me their software has no exploitable vulnerabilities? You bet your arse it does. We can have the baddest bot and thank them for the infrastructure to do it.

  8. Re:Correct me if I am wrong... by Tinctorius · · Score: 4, Funny

    I knew it! I knew erbif was a word!

  9. Re:Is this a problem? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Why are the replies modded funny? Someone's doing a crappy job of moderating today.

  10. Don't panic! by C_Kode · · Score: 3, Funny

    Don't panic, we will be ok! I have Windows Firewall!!!

  11. Re:Look.... by T+Murphy · · Score: 2, Funny

    except there would be some interesting network security articles

    If it is a big enough story to be covered everywhere, the whole internet will be slashdotted. THAT is their true plan.

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    My webcomic
  12. Re:Correct me if I am wrong... by dotgain · · Score: 3, Funny

    Yeah, I thought 'conf t, int gi0/1, shut, end, wr' seemed a bit easier than diving for a cable.

  13. Re:Is this a problem? by dotgain · · Score: 2, Funny

    TODAY?

  14. Oblig by Voyager529 · · Score: 4, Funny

    *sigh* I thought it was the most well known classic blunder not to start a LAN war in Asia!

    *DUCKS*