Will Google's departure from China prove to be a harbinger of things to follow? Going by a report  in  a leading Indian newspaper, the answer is quite likely to be found in the vicinity of a “yes.” A report on Google's exit from China in the Hindustan Times carries a quote from the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the prospect of another American tech giant shutting shop in China. The Indian premier is reported to have told the country's Planning Commission that Dell is about to shutter its China operations. 

The Indian head of government is quoted as having told the Planning Commission,“This morning I met the chairman of Dell Corporation. He informed me that they are buying equipment and parts worth $25 billion from China. They would like to shift to safer environment with climate conducive to enterprise with security of legal system." Although it is difficult to discount anything that quotes a country's leader as its source, it is still wise to wait for a clearer picture to emerge.

But there is no denying the fact that the Chinese government has plenty to ponder in the aftermath of Google's exit.  The Chinese economy may not be under any real threat of a collapse, for the dragon can only founder in the face of an exodus of foreign companies, but it will surely have its hand forced if a few more foreign businesses grow a conscience or leave in search of a more stable environment. It now knows that businesses are not entirely shy of  moving out in search of “safer” alternatives, where they are immune from the whims of a government adamant on making everyone fall in line.

The internet is becoming increasingly popular with both state and non-state actors as a launchpad for attacks against critical  infrastructure belonging to their enemies. A new McAfee report gives a measure of the preparedness and vulnerability of key infrastructure enterprises.

According to a survey conducted by McAfee, more than half of the world's key infrastructure organizations have been at the receiving end of cyber attacks. Attackers usually trigger outages or try and pilfer precious data. Nearly two-thirds of the survey's 600 respondents – IT executives employed by key organizations - reported an increase in attacks over the past year. But going by the results, the worst is yet to come. Around two-fifths of the respondents apprehend a serious attack in the coming twelve months.

“From public transportation, to energy to telecommunications, these are the systems we depend on every day. An attack on any of these industries could cause widespread economic disruptions, environmental disasters, loss of property and even loss of life,"said McAfee CEO Dave DeWalt.

He fears an attack of the magnitude of the recently discovered Operation Aurora being targeted at critical infrastructure. DeWalt termed Operation Aurora “a watershed moment in cybersecurity.” The attack was recently discovered by Google, which revealed that the attackers used zero-day bugs in Internet Explorer and targeted several other organizations apart from Google. It is said to have emanated from China.