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NASA
By Irene Klotz, Reuters
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA has shut down access to an online database and banned new requests from Chinese and some other foreign nationals seeking access to its facilities amid mounting concerns about espionage and export control violations, the U.S. space agency's administrator said on Wednesday.
The security measures include a complete ban on remote computer access by Chinese and some other non-U.S. contractors already working at NASA centers, agency chief Charles Bolden said at a congressional oversight hearing in Washington.
The tightening of security follows the arrest on Saturday of Chinese national Bo Jiang, a former NASA contractor. He was attempting to return to China with "a large amount of information technology that he may not have been entitled to possess," said Representative Frank Wolf, a Republican whose Virginia district includes the NASA Langley Research Center, where Jiang worked.
The FBI arrested Jiang at Dulles International Airport outside Washington, where he had boarded a flight to Beijing, court papers provided by Wolf's office show.
Jiang was arraigned on Monday in U.S. district court in Norfolk, Virginia. A detention hearing is scheduled for Thursday.
He is charged with lying to federal law enforcement agents about computer hardware he planned to take with him to China, the court documents show.
Wolf, who chairs the House Appropriations subcommittee on commerce, justice and science, identified Jiang last week during another hearing on possible security lapses at NASA field centers.
"We know that China is an active, aggressive espionage threat," Wolf, a longtime China critic, said during Wednesday's hearing.
"A recent White House report said that the technologies NASA works on — aerospace and aeronautics — are those that the Chinese have most heavily targeted," Wolf added.
NASA is cooperating with federal investigators, in addition to conducting two internal reviews, Bolden said.
The reviews are expected to be completed within a week, likely to be followed by an external investigation, Bolden added.
In the interim, NASA closed its Technical Reports database "while we review whether there is a risk of export control documents being made available on this website," Bolden said.
Other security upgrades include a moratorium on granting any new access to NASA facilities for individuals from China, Myanmar, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Uzbekistan.
In addition, 281 foreign nationals, including 192 from China, who currently have access to NASA facilities have had their remote computer access shut down, Bolden said.
"This is about national security, not about NASA security, and I take that personally. I'm responsible and I will hold myself accountable once those reviews are completed," Bolden said.
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2013. Check for restrictions at: http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
Leave a Comment:
Mr. Bo Jiangles.....
@!$%# the Chinese! Send them all home, rid us of them!!! They are a disease that wants to take over the world!! Eradicate them now!!!! (and all of the middle east while your at it!)
Whaaaat ? And our government is allowing the Chinese to purchase a heck of a lot of stuff in the U.S.
And what about Idaho State ?
Dance...
Rell, Rell Rell!! You Unrucky round eyes at NASA fine-ry rake up to Chinese steering your 'Merican secrets.
We bean making our own passes to Disry-rand for years! You stupid round eyes not recognize rittle China-man in Mini Mouse costume. You not notice Chinese shuffle in Mini's BIG Shoes. We will steal ALL 'Merican secretes as long as you stupid 'Merican round eyes keep letting us China-men into your country think it "good will.'
......by da way.........who WILL?....we not know "Will?"
...and by da way.....do we have to close all our Chinese restaurants too? If so, you stupid round eyes, you cat population go through roof again!
Bye round eyes, we see you soon. We not going no place. We just hide again and come out and steal more of your stuff while you FBI sends naked pictures of each other!....Haha. I funny.......
Spies and espionage agents who are caught attempting to steal our great nation's technology should be tried in military courts as spies and espionage agents; found guilty; and then executed by firing squad for the betterment and enlightenment of others . . .
And on a related but relevant note, there would be considerably less of this if NASA and other high-technology agencies started hiring American citizens rather than pinko commie foreign spies and espionage agents, really . . .
Really! :-o
Agreed on all fronts.
The Chinese dont give a s*** about anything. They just built a whole theme park in China the size of Epcot modeled after World of Warcraft with no licensing agreements whatsoever. Check this out -
http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/01/16/chinas-massively-illegal-world-of-warcraft-theme-park
This is mind-boggling:
[SOURCE: http://science.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/20/17391046-nasa-steps-up-security-after-arrest-of-former-contractor ]
Why did anyone from those countries have access to NASA facilities?
Iran and North Korea are making daily threats to kill us, and someone at NASA thought it would be a bright idea to give them access to NASA facilities and technology?
The pinko commies in charge of security at NASA need to be fired, followed by replacing them with American citizens who at least can connect a few obvious dots, really . . .
Really! :-o
I agree, NASA and other high tech facilities, shouldn't have needed a wake up call on hiring Chinese communist, and foreign employees, or so called foreign contractors. I see China is training jet aircraft to land on their aircraft carriers. The more we buy from China, the larger their navy, and armed forces are growing.
This is a witch hunt. The FBI is using a trumped up charge to perform illegal search and seizure:
- According to Bo Jiang’s friends (source MITBBS, an overseas scholar message board), Jiang went to NASA with his professor. His boss died in a car accident and his employment contract was not renewed. Without valid work visa Jiang had to go back to China (and there’s no reason to buy a round trip ticket.)
- The lying to investigator charge is bogus. Jiang was questioned during a layover, and he described to the FBI what he had with him in the carry on. Now the FBI is charging him because he didn’t mention what was in the checked luggage? It’s not even omission based on the context of the conversation.
- There’s a perfectly reasonable explanation why Jiang had two SIM card – he canceled his cell phone contract and was using a prepaid SIM card for the last few weeks in the States.