Internet is still hot spot for criminals

Report says malware makes it hard to track those responsible

The problem of malware cyberattacks and the use of the internet to commit crimes－including fraud and invasion of privacy－has worsened in China, a report issued on Tuesday said.

Cases in which hackers steal users' personal information and then defraud or blackmail them happened frequently last year, even though the country has increased its efforts to safeguard information, according to the report, which was produced by e-commerce giant Alibaba and the Nandu Big Data Institute of Southern Metropolis Daily.

"It is difficult to follow the hackers who make or supply malware and to collect evidence in cross-border cases," said Chen Wending, manager of the Guangdong-based institute.

He made the remark during a two-day cybersecurity summit sponsored by Alibaba and the Internet Society of China that opened on Tuesday in Beijing.

"Some people focus on technology, such as making or editing computer programs to inject Trojan malware to steal personal information, while some are malware providers or promoters," he added. "The attackers can cover every aspect of cyberspace."

The report also said that people engaged in such nefarious activities are becoming younger－between 21 and 30 years old－and are mainly active in Guangdong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces.

In addition, industry insiders, including those working in sectors such as medical care, insurance, transportation and express delivery, have been a major group that infringes on private information, it said.

Chinese police caught more than 5,000 people suspected of privacy infringement from January 2016 to May 2017. Of those, about 450 were industry insiders, the report said, citing data from the Ministry of Public Security.

Zhu Wei, an associate professor at China University of Political Science and Law, agreed that the fight against online crime is a big challenge for the country, "as it's too hard to figure out where and how data is leaked".

China's Cybersecurity Law has a chapter dedicated to the regulation of industry insiders, and makes clear their responsibility for protecting users' privacy.

"But it has not been totally effective," Zhu said.

Alibaba highlighted the importance of cooperation between technology companies, judicial authorities and government departments for cyberspace affairs.

"A joint force is more powerful in alleviating the problem," it said.

Moreover, the report's authors suggested China pay attention to training cybersecurity talent, as well as setting up an information-sharing system to track online crimes.