The existence and operation of massive, coordinated, government-affiliated online espionage networks is typically the province of television or the silver screen, rather than the subject of research. In the real world, even a direct link between online and offline action (Russia’s invasion of Georgia and the simultaneous online attacks against that country

are a good example) is not enough to automatically prove that the government behind the one is automatically behind the other. We’ve covered the rise of hacktivism previously on Ars; as more citizens

come online, we’ll undoubtedly see more of this type of crowdsourced aggression in the future.

Researchers in Toronto, however, may have actually discovered and tracked a hacking effort that can be traced back to a foreign intelligence network—China’s, in this case—over the past ten months. The team, which is affiliated with

the Munk Centre for International Studies, has published an extensive report on the activities of what they dub GhostNet. Their investigation took place from June 2008 through March

of 2009, and focused on allegations that the Chinese had engaged in systemic online espionage activities against the Tibetan community. GhostNet was spread through the use of a wide variety of Trojans, many of which were controlled through a program nicknamed gh0st RAT (Remote Access Tool).

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[From Chinese cyberespionage network runs across 103 nations]