Eight major banks and MOF agencies remain on heightened cybersecurity protocols

Eight major banks and MOF agencies remain on heightened cybersecurity protocols

2022-08-09

Last week, Taiwan saw an unprecedented number of cyberattacks amid the Taiwan visit of U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. The government launched response measures to prevent disaster, especially in the financial sector. Taiwan’s eight major banks and the relevant government agencies under the Ministry of Finance ramped up their cybersecurity efforts, with hourly reports on any suspicious activity. Their intensive defensive work will continue until Aug. 12.

Amid China’s constant cyberattacks, the Executive Yuan last week ordered the Ministry of Finance to activate personal data security response measures. Staff were mobilized at Taiwan’s eight major banks, and at agencies under the Ministry of Finance such as the Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corporation and Trade-Van Information Services.

Official websites are checked for abnormalities, and so is the text and images at online shopping interfaces. Coding is inspected for traces of hacking. From Aug. 5 to Aug. 8, cybersecurity staff had to report back on their findings once every hour. Now, from Aug. 9 to Aug. 12, staff give updates on their findings once every three hours. Their work starts at 9 a.m. and doesn’t finish until 1 a.m. the next day. At the Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corporation, five members of staff carry out inspections, while two report any findings.

Liao Chih-chien
Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corporation
They work in shifts, in three or four shifts. We will also take part in the Ministry of Finance’s security meetings.

The Ministry of Finance lists six major kinds of attacks to watch out for. They are: denial-of-service attacks from scattered sources, alteration of webpage elements, false information or data uploads from unspecified users, phishing attacks, abnormal service suspensions, and core network abnormalities.

Cha Shi-cho
NTUST Taiwan Information Security Center
Core networks do not allow external connections. They are more advanced than firewalls and can intercept attacks at the application level.

Taiwan’s government has stepped up security systems at its financial institutions, to prevent any intrusions from Chinese cyberattackers.

嚴防中國網軍財政部啟動資安警界應變小組

2022-08-09

自從美國眾議院議長裴洛西訪台後，中國就頻頻出動駭客，對台灣發動網路攻擊，因此財政部啟動資安警界應變小組，動員八大行庫及台酒，關貿等各事業機構，定期檢查網站圖片、文字，及程式碼，是否出現駭客入侵跡象，並要求在短時間內排除狀況，嚴防中國網軍入侵。

面對中國網軍惡意挑釁，行政院下令財政部，啟動資安警戒應變小組，要求八大行庫，以及財政部旗下台酒、關貿等各事業機構，嚴防駭客入侵。

除了檢查官網、購物網站的圖片和字樣，是否出現異常，也會查看程式碼，有無駭客入侵跡象，從8/5到8號，全天候每小時回報一次，9號到12號，則改成每3個小時，從早上9點到凌晨一點，台酒為此出動5人檢查，2人回報。

[[台酒副總廖志堅]]
“我們是輪班的，就是三班或是四班制，今天財政部召開資安會，我們一樣會參加”

財政部訂出6大防駭指標，包含遭受分散士阻斷攻擊，網頁遭置換，被傳假訊息或不特定人士可上傳輸入資料，以行庫名義偽造釣魚網站，網站異常服務停擺，以及核心系統異常等。

[[台科大資安中心主任查士朝]]
“網路核心系統來講，是不允許外部直接做連線的，防火牆來講，都是比較先進的，比較能夠針對應用程式層級去攔截”

就怕紅色勢力，侵害金融體系安全，政府大動作防駭，繃緊神經，全面備戰。

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Joseph Wu
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China’s continued attempts to intimidate Taiwan will not panic us, nor will they defeat us. To Taiwan, the values of freedom and democracy cannot be taken away; they are built into our DNA.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu on Tuesday addressed China’s recent drills near Taiwan, in a bilingual press conference attended by members of the international press. Wu condemned China for using last week’s visit to Taiwan by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as a pretext for the drills. He said China was attempting to destroy the tacit median line in the Taiwan Strait. He warned the international community that China’s ambitions would not end with Taiwan.

Joseph Wu
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China is now determined to link the East and South China Seas through the Taiwan Strait so that this entire area becomes its internal waters. And its intentions are not likely to stop there, as the PLA has crossed the first island chain multiple times to conduct military exercises in recent years. In addition, in May this year, China signed a security agreement with the Solomon Islands, and intended to do the same with more Pacific countries. China’s influence also extends into Southeast Asia, South Asia, and even Africa and Latin America. China’s behavior towards Taiwan is merely a pretext. Its ambitions and impact is extending far beyond Taiwan. It is thus critical that all freedom-loving nations work together to explore means to respond to the expansion of authoritarianism.

Kathrin Hille
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What is Taiwan’s concrete proposal or suggestion of how the international community could or should push the Chinese military back?

Joseph Wu
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That is something that we need to join our hands with like-minded partners [on] to make sure that the median line is still there, to safeguard peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait; and if you look at the East China Sea, or South China Sea, China’s doing the same.

The Taiwan correspondents of most major press organizations were present at the press conference, ready with questions for the foreign minister. Wu called on democracies to support Taiwan, and to resist Chinese hegemony. He said Taiwan would continue to engage in exchanges with its allies and other countries, and that it would not be intimidated by China.

Joseph Wu
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Recent surveys have also shown that the overwhelming majority of Taiwanese welcomed the visit by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. I am also confident that many more house speakers will visit Taiwan in the future. China wants to block Taiwan’s participation in the international community, to pressure us and squeeze us out. Given this situation, we in Taiwan can’t simply sit around with our hands tied waiting to be captured. What we in Taiwan strive for is for more countries and more leaders to support us.

Separately, Lithuania’s minister of foreign affairs on Monday issued a statement in which he said that the free world cannot and will not allow Taiwan to become a second Ukraine. In response, Taiwan’s foreign ministry called Lithuania a good friend with whom true feelings would emerge in times of adversity.

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Naval officer gives personal account of a confrontation with a Chinese destroyer

A naval officer in command of a confrontation with a Chinese destroyer near Kaohsiung has spoken about the encounter. China’s PLA Navy was instructed to approach Taiwan’s territorial waters, but Taiwan’s Navy was determined to not let that happen. After a tense standoff, the Chinese vessel turned away, narrowly avoiding conflict. The story has come to light thanks to a university student with a penchant for analyzing PLA movements.

Chinese state media on Monday said that Chinese military drills east of the median line of the Taiwan Strait would likely be normalized in the future. China now appears to be validating that statement. China’s PLA has made 42 flights across the line in two days with aircraft including Sukhoi Su-30s, Shenyang J-16s and J-11s, and Xian H-6 bombers. Twenty of those flights occurred on Sunday, and 22 on Monday – the day after it said it would end drills in the strait.

Chang Yan-ting
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Now there is no longer a median line. They’ve already passed over Taiwan’s territorial waters. Now we don’t have any strategic depth, and without strategic depth there is no strategic early warning. Without strategic early warning, we are at high risk of a crisis. If China suddenly attacks, we have no room to maneuver, and we don’t have flexibility in responding to the enemy. It’s a very tense situation. We have to prepare for the worst, and do our best to prepare. I don’t think we should take it lightly or underestimate the enemy, because China is now adopting a paralysis strategy.

While Chinese military aircraft are crossing the strait, Chinese naval vessels are also approaching Taiwan’s territorial waters. Taiwanese university student Joseph Wen, who has gained notoriety for a map he compiled of Chinese military bases, on Saturday tweeted a photo of a Taiwanese guided missile destroyer facing off with a Chinese destroyer off the coast of Kaohsiung. In his tweet, Wen included comments from the naval officer in command of the Taiwanese destroyer.

Wen’s tweet cited information showing that the Chinese destroyer was ordered on Friday to pass the strait’s median line. The Taiwanese naval officer said it was their mission to not let the Chinese destroyer pass, and that they were preparing to collide with the enemy vessel if necessary. The two vessels came within 200 yards – roughly 180 meters – of each other, before the Chinese vessel gave up its course and turned west. The officer said the Navy was at the ready, and that it would prepare for war, but not incite it.

Voice of Joseph Wen
University student
China test-fired a missile. Of course, following a missile test like that, the military’s officers will be nervous. My friends in the Navy said that they would defend Taiwan’s territorial waters to the death, and would not let the PLA approach. The PLA talks tough, but in reality it still exercises caution. I’m sure it is aware of where the bottom line is.

Wen’s social media posts drew praise from Taiwanese users, with people thanking officers for their bravery and determination.

Voice of Joseph Wen
University student
When the Navy officers feel that they are needed, it’s natural that their service will bring them a sense of honor. The defense ministry is like a simple and honest person who is not good at expressing themselves, but in intercepting the PLA they will fully devote themselves to their duty. If the ministry spoke more, I feel the results would be good. If they come out and speak to the public, it will be good for their image.

Wen believes that personal accounts from servicemen and servicewomen would be more effective in galvanizing the public than military propaganda would be.

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UMC founder Robert Tsao discusses resolve to counter CCP: exclusive

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Wearing a bulletproof vest, Robert Tsao was on Monday a guest at FTV’s Coco Hot News. His garb caught the attention of many on set.

Robert Tsao
UMC founder
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office has declared me a Taiwan separatist. I read comments online that were all saying I should get beaten up or killed. So right now I feel like I should take special care to protect myself. Wearing a bulletproof vest has the benefit of offering protection against attacks. That’s the same as Taiwan’s defense strategy. We must protect ourselves and increase the cost of a Chinese attack on Taiwan and lower their chances of taking over Taiwan.

Tsao said the bulletproof vest was for his personal protection, stressing that Taiwan should also focus on defending itself. Last week, the tech tycoon announced a donation of NT$3 billion for Taiwan’s defense.

Robert Tsao
UMC founder
In June, my private company paid NT$1.6 billion in income tax. I’ve put the NT$3 billion together how I could. If I hadn’t paid that NT$1.6 billion in taxes, I would be donating NT$5 billion instead. My two sons are not just supportive of me. They are proud of me.

Previously, Tsao had said that China behaved like a village thug. He had more to say during the interview.

Robert Tsao
UMC founder
I have given it a name, the “CCP Zombie Virus.” Within minutes, those who catch the virus look out only for themselves and turn from humans to beasts. They suck your blood out. Look at China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and their Taiwan Affairs Office. All of them have caught the virus.

Tsao said the CCP had also infiltrated Hong Kong. He choked back tears discussing the events he saw during the 2019 to 2020 protests in Hong Kong against a proposed extradition bill.

Robert Tsao
UMC founder
When I saw it I was distraught. Many of my friends were beaten up. Anyone who was in Hong Kong then would definitely become anti-CCP. Afterward, I swore that I would never let Taiwan become a second Hong Kong.

Tsao’s words on the CCP have garnered attention online, with thousands of views and comments on the episode uploaded on social media. With his NT$3 billion donation for Taiwan’s defense, Tsao’s CCP stance has become one of the hottest topics of debate in recent days.

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