Cyberattacks on pro-Beijing groups should worry Hong Kong
Lau Nai-keung says they raise questions about outside interference
Last week, the Facebook page of the pressure group Voice of Loving Hong Kong was suddenly deleted. This was the fourth similar incident in recent weeks, after the shutdown of the pages of three other groups, including Caring Hong Kong Power. The Voice of Loving Hong Kong suspected foul play and reported it to the police as a type of cyber-bullying.
There have been rumours that Facebook and the CIA were behind it all. To most rational citizens, such conspiracy theories may seem too far-fetched. But in the current political atmosphere and after the Edward Snowden saga, anything seems possible.
For one thing, this is not going to ease the tension and mistrust between the opposing political camps, at a time when debate is beginning on constitutional development leading to universal suffrage in 2017.
This type of cyber-bullying has become a common occurrence against pro-establishment websites and web pages. I, for one, have been a victim for more than a year; there are statements circulating online calling for a concerted attack on a site associated with me.
To target a Facebook page, all you need is enough internet users complaining about certain postings. As for attacking a standalone website, there are ready-made programs that can generate thousands of visitor hits on a the website in a very short time frame, jamming the server and the bandwidth leading to an instant shutdown. I was told this is a very simple trick to most geeks, and it is also available in the market for a small fee.
From my personal experience, the police are usually quite reluctant to take seriously complaints of this type of cyber-bullying. To them, as long as no one gets physically hurt and no property is damaged, there are other more urgent things to attend to. They are also wary of getting tangled up in political disputes because they don't want to be seen as taking sides or be accused of political persecution.
