AfterDawn: Tech news

China: Windows 8 is a threat to national security

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 08 Jun 2014 3:44 User comments (8)

China: Windows 8 is a threat to national security

Just a week after its use was banned on Chinese government computers, Windows 8 has now been branded as a threat to national security.
China's national CCTV broadcasted a highly critical story, citing experts who claimed Windows 8 has and will be used to grab personal data about Chinese citizens.

"Microsoft would no longer open its Windows 8 source code to the Chinese government," said Professor Yang Min of Fudan University. "However the security scheme of the Windows 8 operating system is designed to provide better access for Microsoft to users' database." This poses a huge challenge to the nation's security.

Additionally, the report claims Windows 8 was being used by the NSA to collect data from citizens around the globe. "Your identity, account, contact book, phone numbers, all this data can be put together for big data analysis," added Ni Guangnan, a member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering. "The data might be a good way for the US to monitor other countries."



Microsoft says it is now "actively cooperating" with the Chinese government to review the operating system and alleviate any fears.

Source:
BBC

Previous Next  

8 user comments

18.6.2014 16:16

Ya I'm sorry call me ignorant but this is complete 100% bullshit.

28.6.2014 17:36

Dump Win 8 .... It is total crap and everyone knows it.

39.6.2014 00:06

It's already known that the NSA been forcing software and encryption companies to put backdoors for them to be accessed by the NSA

49.6.2014 01:35

Told you China was pissed because 5 of their army generals were indited by the US for industrial espionage!



-------------------------------------------------------------------------

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 09 Jun 2014 @ 1:36

59.6.2014 16:06

NSA & Microsoft are like sisters spying on old boyfriends.
Everybody know it.
lol

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 09 Jun 2014 @ 4:10

69.6.2014 17:38

The NSA requires all OS manufacturers to include spy-ware in the OS, and then precludes the manufacturers from talking about it in the interests of "national security." It's not Microsoft's fault, or Google's, or Apple's.

While China is correct that the NSA/CIA are listening, it's not China's citizens who have to worry. The NSA does not have the personnel to translate and review the internet activities of 1 billion Chinese citizens, even if someone at the NSA cared to know what shaving lotion Hin Chow Wing and his wife bought online last month.

The truth is that the CIA/NSA use these tools to spy on Chinese government officials, and on the government officials of every other country, just as those countries' governments spy on our government officials. Spying on government officials been going on for centuries. And countries have always used whatever tools are available. Blaming it on Windows 8 is a bit weird.

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 09 Jun 2014 @ 5:40

710.6.2014 02:19

China is retaliating for being outed spying on US corporations. It's sour grapes and has nothing to do with the NSA or whomever.

810.6.2014 11:00

While I really don't mind Win8 anymore,I gotta agree with the lousy communists.......Win8 requires username and acct info to even login and use the OS so it's believable that it does indeed collect info about peeps....however, Win8 is almost the same as Win7. It's just a different start menu but everyone operates in the desktop part anyway so Win8 bashers should really pipe down and stay off the bandwagon.

Comments have been disabled for this article.

News archive