BEIJING: China’s Minister of State Security, Chen Yixin, recently called for the swift establishment of a comprehensive system to prevent and control risks related to artificial intelligence to ensure the technology’s healthy and orderly development, as AI becomes a key area of global technological competition.
Chen said AI has become a new strategic battleground among major powers and stressed the need to promote its development while strengthening security measures and governance.
His remarks appeared in an article released recently in a magazine published by the Cyberspace Administration of China. In the article, Chen described AI as a driving force behind a new wave of technological revolution and industrial transformation, saying it is rapidly being integrated into all aspects of society and reshaping global economies, technological innovation and social governance.
At the same time, he called for a clear understanding of the risks and challenges brought about by the rapid development of AI and said efforts must continue to ensure security is maintained.
Chen said AI is having an impact not only on political and national security, but also on cybersecurity, espionage, data protection, technological development, social governance and military affairs.
As of June, more than 500 million people in China had used AI products, which are being adopted rapidly and on a wide scale, according to Chen.
He said hostile forces and malicious actors are taking advantage of generative AI — technology that can produce text, images, audio and video — as well as automated online accounts to spread political rumors, harmful information and stir up conflicts at low cost and on a large scale.
“This poses a direct threat to China’s political, institutional and ideological security,” he said.
AI is also making it easier and faster to find weaknesses in computer systems and develop malicious software, Chen said. Some countries and organizations now have the ability to identify system vulnerabilities and carry out sophisticated cyberattacks, which lowers the technical skills and costs required to launch such attacks and can pose serious risks to China’s critical information infrastructure.
He also warned of the risks of sensitive data being obtained through AI-assisted information gathering.
“Foreign intelligence agencies are leveraging intelligent web crawlers, data mining and profiling technologies to collect sensitive information, including key national data, trade secrets and citizens’ privacy,” Chen said.
He added that some domestic users, because of insufficient awareness of data security, use foreign AI products to process sensitive information, allowing the transfer of such data overseas and resulting in serious data leaks.
Chen also pointed to restrictions imposed by some countries on access to advanced technologies and equipment in the name of national security. Such measures, he said, have hindered technological innovation and created additional challenges for the global AI industry and supply chains.
Meanwhile, the rapid development of AI is outpacing existing laws, ethical standards and governance mechanisms, making effective regulation more difficult, Chen said.
AI is also changing the nature of warfare, he added, with algorithms increasingly helping determine the accuracy and effectiveness of strikes and potentially influencing the outcome of battles. –The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item
