Ransomware "Wanna Cry." (Photo/CGTN)
It is groundless to claim that China is behind the recent ransomware WannaCry attacks that swept across the world, said Zheng Wenbin, chief security engineer of Qihoo 360, a major Internet security company of China recently.
The claims were made on the basis of misleading news stories, he added.
Zheng said that the news stories originated from a report published by a small foreign company.
The report determined that the ransomware is connected with China only by analyzing its interface texts, which is unprofessional and not serious.
"The correct and professional way is to trace the ransomware through the traits of the code," Zheng insisted.
Li Bosong, deputy chief engineer at Antiy Labs, another major company that focuses on antivirus solutions, said the report lacks substantial evidence and can hardly earn the approval of cyber security experts.
The ransomware WannaCry has 11 language versions.
According to Zheng, the hackers might have hired people to help develop these language versions. "Hackers often add characters from different languages into their code to confuse the public and hide their identity," he explained.
Li is certain that any cyber security professional, either Chinese or foreign, will easily discover the falsity of the claims that WannaCry came from China.
As for now, the ransomware attacks are under control. Antiy Labs, Qihoo 360 and other cyber security firms in China have all issued warnings and developed upgrade patches for their users to install.
Professionals will be more alert about the cyber security environment in the future.
Considering the huge potential profits the ransomware may generate, Li warned that there might be more future hacking threats.
However, cyber security technologies are constantly evolving to confront and overwhelm these new threats.
"China is one of the most advanced nations globally in terms of cyber security technology. We provide strong technical support for domestic users as well as internationally renowned software companies. China is bound to make more contributions in defending world cyber security and the safety of technical facilities." Zheng said.
