China creates 'Information Support Force' to improve networked defense capabilities

Last week, China reorganized its military to create an information support force aimed at ensuring it can fight and win networked wars.

President Xi Jinping officially established the Information Support Force (ISF) by presenting a flag to its commanders in a ceremony last Friday and, according to a account In his speech published on the Defense Ministry's website, he said the new entity was necessary if the People's Liberation Army (PLA) was to be able to “win modern wars.” The ISF will therefore “build a networked information system that meets the requirements of modern warfare and presents the characteristics of our army and will promote the accelerated improvement of the combat capabilities of the system with high quality”.

The creation of the ISF gives the cyberspace and aerospace capabilities of the current Chinese Strategic Support Force a new common focus.

Beijing has positioned the creation of the ISF as an essential modernization. Xi has previously said that 2027 would be a pivotal year for the Chinese military, as it would mark the 100th anniversary of the PLA itself.

The ISF will be managed by China's Central Military Commission that Xi chairs.

It is no coincidence that Xi oversees the new force: his doctrines call on China to develop its military strength in all areas.

What the ISF will do has not been discussed as one might expect.

Militaries around the world have long understood that communication is essential on the modern battlefield. This development is therefore hardly surprising. On the other hand, China is already considered very comfortable with using networks to harm its rivals.

FBI Director Christopher Wray last week labeled China poses a “broad and implacable” threat, on the grounds that its cyber agents constantly target US infrastructure.

China has “the capacity to physically wreak havoc on our critical infrastructure at a time of its choosing,” he said at the Vanderbilt Summit on Modern Conflict and Emerging Threats in Nashville.

“China’s hacking program is larger than that of all other major countries combined,” Wray warned. “And this significant advantage is only amplified by the military and intelligence services' growing use of artificial intelligence, built largely on innovation and data stolen from us to improve their hacking operations, including to steal even more technology and data,” the ministry said. »added the director.

Wray revealed that the FBI's response to China's activities sees it working with America's own military entity dedicated to information warfare, Cyber ​​Command.

“As part of these operations, we often share targeting and other information with partners such as U.S. Cyber ​​Command, foreign law enforcement agencies, the CIA and others, and then “We act as one. When it comes to cybercriminals and nation-state threats, we plan our operations by focusing on all the elements we know from experience that make hacker groups work.”

The director said partnerships with the private sector, friendly governments and other agencies are “the very foundation of our work facing Beijing.”

He also considers the organizations victimized by Chinese attacks as important partners.

“When something goes wrong, we need victims to contact us immediately, because the first victim to report an intrusion can provide the key information that will allow us to not only help them recover, but also prevent the attack spreads to other sectors and other companies,” Wray explained.

“We saw the best results in situations where a company made a habit of contacting their local FBI office before there was even any sign of trouble, because it put everyone on the same page and contributed to the preparation of the company,” he added.

“In fact, Volt Typhoon was destroyed thanks, in part, to private sector assistance to companies coordinating with us.”