Gmail attacks ‘traced to Chinese schools’

Cyber attacks against US companies including Google have been traced to a Chinese university and school, according to reports.

Sources told the New York Times that the attacks are thought to have originated at Shanghai Jiaotong University and the Lanxiang Vocational School – a school with ties to the Chinese military.

Investigators have reportedly said there is a link to a computer science class at the school, which is taught by a Ukrainian professor.

The sources added that the attacks may have begun in April 2009 – much earlier than originally assumed.

Although affecting around 20 firms, the attacks were primarily targeted at the Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists. Subsequent security reviews have revealed that Gmail accounts based in the US, China, and Europe belonging to ‘advocates of human rights in China’ have been routinely accessed by third parties.