China Escapes Global Cyber Chaos Thanks to Strategic Tech Decisions
While the rest of the world was dealing with the blue screen of death on Friday, one country managed to escape largely unscathed – China. The reason behind this is quite simple: CrowdStrike, the software responsible for the chaos, is hardly used in China.
Unlike many other countries, very few organizations in China buy software from American firms like CrowdStrike, which have been vocal about the cyber-security threat posed by Beijing. Additionally, China is not as reliant on Microsoft as the rest of the world, with domestic companies like Alibaba, Tencent, and Huawei dominating the cloud provider market.
Reports of outages in China were mainly at foreign firms or organizations, with some users complaining on social media about not being able to check into international chain hotels in Chinese cities. This is due to the increasing trend of replacing foreign IT systems with domestic ones, creating a “splinternet” in China.
Cybersecurity experts like Josh Kennedy White praise China’s strategic handling of foreign tech operations, noting that Microsoft operates in China through a local partner, 21Vianet, which manages its services independently. This setup insulates China’s essential services from global disruptions, aligning with Beijing’s focus on national security by avoiding reliance on foreign systems.
The Global Times newspaper published an editorial criticizing countries that restrict Chinese technology while ignoring their own security lapses. The editorial also took a jab at internet giants who monopolize the industry, highlighting the need for inclusive sharing of governance outcomes in network security efforts.
Despite the overall resilience of China’s tech infrastructure, some workers expressed gratitude to Microsoft for an unexpected early vacation caused by the global cyber chaos. “Thank you Microsoft for an early vacation” trended on Chinese social media, with users sharing pictures of blue error screens.
In a world where tech tensions between nations continue to rise, China’s strategic tech decisions have allowed it to navigate global cyber disruptions with relative ease.
