-Caveat Lector- Meditation group says China assaulting its Web site Copyright © 1999 Nando Media Copyright © 1999 Associated Press NEW YORK (July 30, 1999 5:14 p.m. EDT http://www.nandotimes.com) - Web sites in the United States and elsewhere devoted to the Falun Gong meditation group are coming under heavy electronic attack, managers of the sites said Friday. At least one attempt at disruption appears to trace back to a Chinese national police bureau in Beijing. Falun Gong has been banned in China, where communist authorities are engaged in an escalating crackdown, arresting adherents and confiscating publications and videos. Bob McWee, of Middletown, Md., a Falun Gong practitioner, said a site he maintains to promote the group, www.falunusa.net, has been under persistent electronic assault. McWee said his Web server was undergoing a continuous "denial-of- service" attack, a common Internet tactic used to overwhelm a computer with repeated electronic requests - like a telephone ringing nonstop to block other callers. In addition, someone tried to gain access to the server, pretending to be a legitimate webmaster, and in the process left an Internet address, he said. "They tried to hack my machine from theirs. And they can't do that without revealing their" Internet address, he said. The address that McWee said was left behind is registered with the Asia Pacific Network Information Center, a public registry service for Internet addressees. According to the service, there are two telephone numbers in Beijing listed with that address. When The Associated Press called the numbers, a person who answered the phone identified them as belonging to the Public Security Ministry. A telephone operator at the ministry said they belonged to its Internet Monitoring Bureau. Ministry officials and spokesmen refused to comment Friday. McWee registered a complaint about the hacking attempt with the Maryland state police's computer crimes division. Police spokesman Pete Piringer said that because the attack did not succeed in getting access to McWee's server, there did not seem to be a crime committed. A U.S. government agency saw an indirect sign of the attacks. A network engineer at the U.S. Department of Transportation contacted McWee when they noticed his server was contacting one of their computers unasked, according to Everett Dowd, deputy director of telecommunications of the Information Technology Operation at the department. McWee said this was because the denial-of-service attack sent requests to his server with forged return addresses, one of which happened to be the department's server. Administrators of other Web sites devoted to the movement also said they had been attacked. Li Shao, in Nottingham, Britain, said the site he maintains was hacked into Monday. What he called Chinese "government propaganda" was placed on some pages, while others were deleted. Jillian Ye, of Toronto, Canada, who maintains two sites, said that beginning one or two months ago, her server began going down almost every day. The problems got progressively worse, until she recognized the symptoms of an attack and moved the sites to a more secure server. In their barrage of criticism of Falun Gong, Chinese state media have cited the group's Internet presence as proof that it was well-organized and not just harmless meditation buffs. A government ban on Falun Gong publications passed after the group was outlawed includes electronic publications. Nearly all of Falun Gong Web sites in China have been shut down since the ban was announced. China's communist leaders banned the Falun Gong movement last week, accusing it of trying to develop political power. Falun Gong leaders have denied any political ambitions and denied they organized protests that erupted two weeks ago after authorities reportedly arrested leading members of the group. Falun Gong, founded by Li Hongzhi, who now lives in the United States, draws on martial arts, Buddhism and Taoism. The group says its goals are physical and mental fitness and high moral standards, and denies that it is either a religion or a political movement. Associated Press Writer John Leicester in Beijing contributed to this report. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Steve Wingate California Director SKYWATCH INTERNATIONAL Anomalous Images and UFO Files http://www.anomalous-images.com DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! 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