BEIJING (AP) 鈥� Warnings to use disposable 鈥渂urner鈥� phones and laptops. Privacy-protecting software. Concerns about a in an official Games smartphone app.
Such precautions fueled unease about data privacy for competitors and attendees at the Winter Olympics in Beijing. Not everyone heeded them.
鈥淗onestly, I鈥檝e been coming to China for 12 years or whatever, and I鈥檓 not that important,鈥� Canadian snowboarder Mark McMorris said. 鈥淢aybe if I was a diplomat or something, then I鈥檇 switch out my phone.鈥�
Nefarious cyber activity is a flashpoint in the geopolitical rivalry between China and the West. Beijing has long been and technology watchdogs of widespread online snooping and data pilfering, .
Now that the Games are ending, and some 16,000 athletes, organizers, journalists and other visitors are heading home, concerns turn to what malware and other problems those who failed to heed the warnings might be carrying with them.
The good news: Cybersecurity firm Mandiant said there鈥檚 been no sign of any 鈥渋ntrusion activity鈥� tied to the Olympics by the Chinese or other governments.
But that shouldn鈥檛 be taken as a sign that nothing happened, said Benjamin Read, Mandiant鈥檚 director of cyber espionage analysis.
鈥淢ost compromises are detected weeks or months after they occur, so it鈥檚 too early to say for sure that there were no incidents,鈥� he said.
It鈥檚 also possible that the electronic surveillance was most important when visitors were in China, and wouldn鈥檛 continue when those people went home, he said.
He advised anyone who travelled to China for the Winter Games to change their passwords when they get back and make sure that no unknown devices or services have access to their accounts.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not always possible to know if a device has been compromised so it鈥檚 best to take every precaution,鈥� he said.
Unfettered internet access is important for many amateur Olympic athletes who post photos and videos of their feats on Instagram and other social media sites. It can be critical for landing sponsors.
鈥淚鈥檓 on my phone for sure. I think we鈥檙e all on our phones,鈥� said Canadian snowboarder Laurie Blouin, who said she was 鈥渇eeding the 鈥橤rams.鈥�
McMorris said he was using his iPhone to stream TV shows, exchange chat messages and post on Instagram, Twitter and TikTok.
And U.S.-born Chinese freestyle skiing sensation Eileen Gu has posted multiple times on Instagram since the Games began.
When a user asked why she was able to use the app, which is blocked in China, Gu responded that 鈥渁nyone can download a vpn,鈥� or virtual private network, software that scrambles communications so it can鈥檛 be read by anyone except the recipient.
The posts, which later disappeared, sparked an online outcry over internet freedom, in part because VPNs aren鈥檛 available in Chinese app stores after authorities on their use.
Some U.S. athletes said they were also using VPNs, which can be used to tunnel through China鈥檚 so-called 鈥淕reat Firewall鈥� a censorship system which blocks websites, services and apps deemed inappropriate by authorities.
The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee had told athletes that anything they do online while in China would be monitored. The Canadian Olympic Committee warned there was the potential for cybercrimes.
But while there weren鈥檛 specific details about threats, experts said it most likely wasn鈥檛 about getting a competitive edge at the games.
鈥淭he Chinese government is not interested in the average snowboarder,鈥� said Greg Austin, a senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.
鈥淭hey are interested in collecting whatever data they have and putting it into a database on the chance that the snowboarder would become a politician or a leader in a position of influence,鈥� Austin said.
He added that it鈥檚 not uncommon practice for intelligence services of any country.
Beijing was also likely monitoring for anything politically sensitive in Olympic visitors鈥� communications, such as contact with dissidents, Austin said.
Journalists were arguably a juicier target than athletes, and many also brought burner devices.
The International Olympic Committee said cybersecurity is 鈥渁n important aspect of hosting the Games鈥� but that in order to maintain secure operations, it would not comment further.
At any rate, some participants who did take precautions were looking forward to resuming their daily diet of streaming and social media.
U.S. figure skater Mariah Bell was given a burner phone but had been staying off social media and Netflix, which she said was 鈥渂oth amazing and boring.鈥�
鈥淚鈥檓 very excited to go home see my dog," she said, 鈥渟ee my family, go back to sitting on Instagram for hours.鈥�
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Associated Press writer Aaron Morrison contributed to this report. AP Business Writer Kelvin Chan writes about technology from London and is covering a range of Olympic stories in Beijing. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/chanman.
Kelvin Chan, The Associated Press
