The state-run China Central Television network has yanked a video that inadvertently included a short clip of a cyber-attack tool targeting Falun Gong websites.
Posted in mid-July, the video was a documentary entitled "The Internet storm is coming!" Eleven minutes into the show, without explanation, it showed b-roll footage of a customized computer tool, apparently choosing from a list of Falun Gong websites to hit with a distributed denial-of-service attack.
It's unclear where the footage came from, but its appearance in a state-sponsored film appeared to offer an accidental peek into China's cyber-attack capabilities. Falun Gong computers have been targeted for years by what many consider to be a state-sponsored hacking campaign.
China Central Television has not returned calls asking for comment on the video, but on Thursday China's Defense Ministry told the Washington Post that "the content and opinion of the program do not represent the policy and stance of the government."
The page where the video was hosted returned an error message Friday, saying, "This page does not exist anymore." However, a clip showing the attack tool is still floating around on YouTube.
Robert McMillan covers computer security and general technology breaking news for The IDG News Service. Follow Robert on Twitter at @bobmcmillan. Robert's e-mail address is robert_mcmillan@idg.com
