http://www.latimes.com/HOME/NEWS/NATION/topstory.html Monday, January 4, 1999 By MAGGIE FARLEY, Times Staff Writer Dissidents Hack Holes in China's New Wall Electronic guerrillas breach blocks set up by the government to keep citizens from seeing unorthodox news and opinions on the Internet. SHANGHAI--The land that brought the world the Great Wall has built a new barrier on its ultimate frontier. This shield, like its predecessor, is designed to repel invaders and protect China from their foreign ideas. Dubbed "the Great Chinese Firewall," it is a series of Internet blocks and filters meant to stop Chinese citizens from seeing online news and opinions that differ from the government's political line. But just as the miles of mud and stone erected centuries ago failed to keep China's citizens in and invaders out, this cyber-barrier is being breached by a new generation of computer experts. They call themselves "hacktivists," electronic guerrillas with political agendas ranging from ending censorship to outright sabotage. With names such as Bronc Buster, Cult of the Dead Cow and the Hong Kong Blondes, they sound more like rock bands than enemies of the people. But the Chinese government is taking them seriously. They claim to have defaced government Web sites, torn down firewalls and disabled a satellite, and to possess the tools to infiltrate government computer networks. They have linked up with political activists. "We are computer experts, and above that we like the concept of free speech," said the Chinese editor of VIP Reference, an electronic magazine based in Washington that is e-mailed into China. The Chinese-born editor uses the English alias Richard Long to protect his family back on the mainland. [See URL for rest of story...] -o- Subscribe: mail majordomoat_private with "subscribe isn". Today's ISN Sponsor: Internet Security Institute [www.isi-sec.com]
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