US decides to retaliate against China for cyber attacks: Report

The US administration of President Barack Obama has decided that it must retaliate against China for the alleged theft and revelation of personal information of over 20 million Americans from government databases.

However, the White House is still struggling to decide how it can retaliate against the Chinese government without prompting an escalating cyber war, according to a New York Times report published Friday.

The decision came after the Obama administration concluded that the hacking attack on the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) was so vast in scope that the usual practices for dealing with traditional espionage cases did not apply.

In a series of classified meetings, intelligence officials have struggled to choose among options that range from mainly symbolic responses, like diplomatic protests or the expulsion of known agents in the United States, to more significant actions.

More significant measures include retaliatory operations designed to steal or reveal to the public information as valuable to the Beijing as the secret OPM files on government employees were to Washington.

But some officials who are involved in the internal debates over responses to the cyber attack fear any counterattack could lead to an escalation of the cyber conflict between the two countries.

“One of the conclusions we’ve reached is that we need to be a bit more public about our responses, and one reason is deterrence,” said one senior administration official involved in the debate, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal White House plans.

“We need to disrupt and deter what our adversaries are doing in cyberspace, and that means you need a full range of tools to tailor a response,” the official added.

The US Justice Department may take legal action against Chinese individuals and organizations believed responsible for the data theft, just as it did last year when five officers from the Chinese military were indicted on a charge of the theft of intellectual property from American companies.

But many officials characterize the punishment as only symbolic because unless the Chinese officers visit the United States or a close ally, none of them will be prosecuted and sentenced in the US.

Washington has not officially accused Beijing of carrying out the recent hacks, but a number of US officials and private cyber security researchers have accused the Chinese government of being behind the intrusions.

The US has, for years, accused the Chinese government and military of conducting computer-based attacks, including efforts to steal information from federal agencies.

China has dismissed the hacking allegations as "irresponsible and unscientific."

Beijing says Washington’s cyber attack accusations are hypocritical, since intelligence leaks have revealed that the US itself is the most active perpetrator of cyber espionage against foreign countries, especially against China.

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