\n<\/p>\n
To try to determine the probability of those name repetitions being a coincidence, Cary checked two databases of Chinese names and consulted with Yi Fuxian, a professor of Chinese demography at the University of Wisconsin\u2013Madison. The name Qiu Daibing\u2014or \u90b1\u4ee3\u5175 in Chinese characters\u2014turned out to be a relatively unlikely name to show up twice just by chance, he says. The surname \u90b1 alone, Yi confirmed to WIRED, represents just 0.27 percent of Chinese names, and in combination with the specific \u4ee3\u5175 given name would represent a far smaller percentage.<\/p>\n
The name Yu Yang (\u4f59\u6d0b in Chinese characters) is more common. But the two names appearing in association seems less likely to be a coincidence, Cary theorizes. \u201cThe sheer improbability of somebody having this name also being paired with a Yu Yang, having this skill set and going to the same university in the same location where these companies are registered, it’s just an incredibly small chance that these are not the right people,\u201d Cary argues.<\/p>\n
WIRED attempted to contact Qiu Daibing and Yu Yang via both Qiu Daibing’s LinkedIn page and an email address on the website of Beijing Huanyu Tianqiong but received no response.<\/p>\n
If Cary’s theory that two men linked to Salt Typhoon were in fact trained in Cisco’s Networking Academy is correct, it doesn’t represent a flaw or security oversight in Cisco’s program, he says. Instead, it points to a tough-to-avoid issue in a globalized market where technology products\u2014and even training in the technical details of those products\u2014are widely available, including to potential hacking adversaries.<\/p>\n
Cary argues that the issue has only become more glaring, however, as China has tried for years to replace Cisco equipment and other Western devices in its own networks with domestic alternatives. \u201cIf China is moving in the direction of actually removing these products from Chinese networks,\u201d Cary asks, “who’s still interested in learning about them?”<\/p>\n
China has, meanwhile, increasingly restricted its own information-sharing with the global cybersecurity community, points out John Hultquist, chief analyst at Google’s Threat Intelligence Group, for instance, by pressuring security researchers not to present findings at international conferences.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s like we’re in a sharing group, and they’ve told us straight to our face that they’re not going to reciprocate,\u201d Hultquist says. \u201cWe’re benefiting them with our programs. But it’s not going in the other direction.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n