Well, having said that it can be difficult pinpointing where a hacker attack originated, that task is made somewhat easier when the person believed to have been responsible for writing the relevant code apparently posts part of that code on a hacking forum.
What is really interesting in the E-Commerce Times report on the latest development is that the person believed responsible is also said to have ties to the Chinese government, something that if true could tip the balance decisively in favour of those arguing Google should pull out of China entirely:
‘If it does turn out that the hackers had ties to the Chinese government, however, Google’s position could be dramatically altered in its dispute with China.
‘”I’ve always felt that one of the missed parts of this story is Google’s early emphasis on the fact that human rights activists had been targeted” in the attacks, Danny O’Brien, international outreach coordinator for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, told the E-Commerce Times.
‘Not only was that fact emphasized as justification for the “very radical steps” Google took upon discovering the attacks, O’Brien said, but “it was also a major clue that this was an attack by a major state actor — or someone who believed they could sell the information to a state actor.”‘