China built and paid for the African Union’s computer network – but inserted a backdoor allowing it access to the continental organisation’s confidential information

In January 2017, the information technology unit at the African Union’s headquarters in Addis Ababa noticed something strange, according to a stunning investigation in French newspaper Le Monde.

Every night, between midnight and 2am, there was a strange peak in data usage – even though the building was almost entirely empty. Upon further investigation, the technicians noticed something even stranger. That data – which included confidential information – was being sent to servers based in Shanghai.

The African Union’s shiny new headquarters was built and paid for by the Chinese government, as a gift to its “African friends”. But when the building was officially opened in 2012, China left a backdoor into the African Union’s computer network, allowing it to access the institution’s secrets at will.

“According to several sources within the institution, all sensitive content could be spied on by China,” wrote Le Monde. “It’s a spectacular leak of data, spread from January 2012 to January 2017.”

The Chinese mission to the AU did not respond to Le Monde’s request for comment.

Once the problem was discovered, African Union officials acted quickly to fix it. The organisation acquired its own servers, and began encrypting its communications. In July 2017, a team of experts from Algeria – a country with a notoriously efficient intelligence community – along with cybersecurity experts from Ethiopia combed the building from top to bottom, looking for hidden microphones and other potential weaknesses.

China would not be the first supposedly friendly superpower to spy on the African Union. A separate investigation in December 2016, conducted by Le Monde and The Intercept, revealed that African Union officials were targeted for surveillance by British intelligence.

China maka why? A lesson to African countries, there really is nothing like a free lunch.

I don't trust Chinese

Are you aware they are the ones that are building most of our infrastructures under buhari government . Why should African union use Chinese companies to build their structures, abi brick layers no dey Africa again

Avoid free launch...

This proofs the best place to store sensitive data is in the brain


Besides however I don't think China is dumb enough to allow a trace back to Shanghai

Gaaad Damn Chinks....

We're seeing a classical example of why free things are usually not safe to collect.
But AU IT experts should have carried out a preemptive de-worming before putting the servers to use. Is that not basic?

What a Greek gift. And AU never bothered to run a check on those servers.

That shows how incompetent African leaders are and same guys demanded an apology from Trump for calling their countries shithole.

Most African leaders are stooges of foreign governments hence their inability to query subversive actions/spyware by such countries.

GMBuhari:
This proofs the best place to store sensitive data is in the brain


Besides however I don't think China is dumb enough to allow a trace back to Shanghai

When you underestimate your opponent, you become careless

They thought Africans are brainless, so they let their guard down

It's very easy to route the traffic around the world before ending in Shanghai, but they didn't do it

The whole of Africa is a child when it comes to high tech. Very embarrassing how others come to Africa and take our resources with or without our approval and we just stand to the side and hail them. The most stupid set of people of any continent. We only like to fight ourselves and oppress ourselves, that is our current continental goal. A very idiotic continent that is treated like so, how can we not know that the whole walls and every other materials used or added have been bugged. Is it not Nigeria's president that went to london for months and was naively discussing sensitive matters in person and on the phone. Such fools lead us the bench fools.

TheFreeOne:
What a Greek gift. And AU never bothered to run a check on those servers.

That shows how incompetent African leaders are and same guys demanded an apology from Trump for calling their countries shithole.

Most African leaders are stooges of foreign governments hence their inability to query subversive actions/spyware by such countries.

Until we stop the attitude of give us please continue