The Inevitability of Reunification: China’s View of Strategic Drivers for A Potential Taiwan Conflict

For China, Taiwan independence is a relic of the historical struggle between the Chinese people and foreign imperialists; peaceful unification would be ideal, but the use of force remains an option

nattothoughts.com

How China's Cyber Operations – and the Contractors Behind Them – Target Critics Abroad

State agencies and an ecosystem of private contractors use cyber capabilities and social engineering to locate, monitor, and harass critics living outside China

nattothoughts.com

Is This Chinese Company Watching the World to Train its AI?

The story of Meari Technology reveals how insecure-by-design IoT infrastructure, global surveillance exposure, and China’s tech ecosystem are converging into a new model of AI-enabled data power.

nattothoughts.com

Chasing Palantir: Inside China’s Obsession and the Rise of Its Next-Generation AI-enabled Defense Firms

Chinese companies face institutional barriers as they strive to emulate Palantir’s provision of AI-enabled military-industrial applications to governments

nattothoughts.com

Chinese Firm Claims AI-Driven Bug Discovery Near Claude Mythos Scale

Chinese companies could match the capabilities attributed to Claude Mythos within months, according to industry experts, reinforcing existing cyber offense asymmetries

nattothoughts.com

Cybersecurity Strategy in China’s 15th Five-Year Plan

China’s high-level cyber strategy for the next five years continues the effort to build a cyber superpower, outlining more detailed requirements

nattothoughts.com

Faux Amis: How France Stands Apart in Europe’s High-Risk University Cyber Partnerships with China

France hosts the EU’s densest cluster of cyber partnerships with Chinese defense-linked universities, raising exposure to dual-use knowledge transfer, EU funding access, and institutional influence

nattothoughts.com

China’s National Research Center for Information Technology Security: Is It Part of the PLA Cyberspace Force?

Under “Two signboards” arrangement, the NITSC offers services to public, Party, government, and military entities, under the guise of a civilian name.

nattothoughts.com

The Tianfu Cup Returns Under MPS Leadership as AI Takes Center Stage

After a two-year hiatus, the Tianfu Cup returns under MPS lead, combining AI-assisted vulnerability discovery and exploitation, a new competition track, and less transparency in vulnerability handling

nattothoughts.com

Provincial Tasking, Cross-Provincial Execution: A Case-Based Look at How China Scales Cyber Operations

How decentralized MSS and MPS tasking and market-enabled, cross-provincial execution by commercial firms shape the scale of China’s cyber operations

nattothoughts.com

China’s 2025 Top 20 Cybersecurity Companies: Which “Dark Horses” Will Emerge to Prominence in 2026?

Annual ranking reveals hyper-competitive, innovation-focused top performers – some familiar and some not so well known, with extensive government ties

nattothoughts.substack.com

A Look Back at the Top 5 Natto Thoughts Reports in 2025

From attack–defense thinking to vulnerability research and exposed threat actors, we explored key aspects of China’s cyber ecosystem

nattothoughts.substack.com

The Many Arms of the MSS: Why Provincial Bureaus Matter in China’s Cyber Operations

Provincial bureaus of the Chinese Ministry of State Security likely operate with their own tasking priorities, resources, and local ecosystems for cyber operations

nattothoughts.substack.com

Knownsec: The King of Vulnerability Missed Three Vulnerabilities of Its Own

The leak incident involving Chinese cybersecurity firm Knownsec shows the company’s seemingly transparent crisis management strategy and underscores its position in the industry, but mysteries remain.

nattothoughts.substack.com

China’s Cybersecurity Companies Advancing Offensive Cyber Capabilities Through Attack-Defense Labs

Private-sector attack-defense labs form a core pillar of how China builds, sustains, and operationalizes cyber capability for commercial purposes and state-linked cyber operations.

nattothoughts.substack.com

Beyond the Aliases: Decoding Chinese Threat Group Attribution and the Human Factor

Examining the overlap between APT27, HAFNIUM, and Silk Typhoon through recent U.S. government disclosures, and why understanding the humans behind the keyboard is important for cyber defenders

nattothoughts.substack.com

Salt Typhoon: New Joint Advisory Offers a Beacon Through the Storm but Stirs Up New Questions

Analysis of newly identified Salt Typhoon-linked companies casts light on the complex ecosystem of front companies and real businesses supporting Chinese state cyber operations

nattothoughts.substack.com

Few and Far Between: During China’s Red Hacker Era, Patriotic Hacktivism Was Widespread—Talent Was Not

Inside the small, elite circles that powered China’s massive hacker communities in the late 1990s and 2000s.

nattothoughts.substack.com

HAFNIUM-Linked Hacker Xu Zewei: Riding the Tides of China’s Cyber Ecosystem

How one man’s career reveals the interconnected web of China’s state security apparatus, cybersecurity firms, and strategic industries

nattothoughts.substack.com

Pick Your Innovation Path in AI: Chinese Edition

China’s advances in AI show the effects of a state approach of “introduce, digest, absorb, re-innovate” and years of debate on the balance between market-driven innovation and state-led development

nattothoughts.substack.com

Butian Vulnerability Platform: Forging China's Next Generation of White Hat Hackers

From 'Trouser Belt Project' to 'Patching the Sky': Qi An Xin’s Butian platform serves as cradle for nurturing new talent and smelter for refining seasoned hackers’ skills

nattothoughts.substack.com

From Humble Beginnings: How a Vocational College Became a Vulnerability Powerhouse

Qingyuan Polytechnic's focus on vulnerability studies highlights China's continued efforts in gathering vulnerability resources

nattothoughts.substack.com

From the World of “Hacker X Files” to the Whitewashed Business Sphere

Jiang Jintao’s journey from hacker to infosec entrepreneur illustrates the blend of ambition, skill, and changes in China's cybersecurity industry

nattothoughts.substack.com

Ransom-War and Russian Political Culture: Trust, Corruption, and Putin's Zero-Sum Sovereignty

Recent Western government revelations about EvilCorp flesh out how Russian ransomware actors and the Russian government use each other to navigate a world they perceive as dangerous.

nattothoughts.substack.com

Wars without Gun Smoke: China Plays the Cyber Name-and-Shame Game on Taiwan and the U.S.

China’s security services have called out hackers of an alleged “Internet Army of Taiwan Independence” and of the U.S. National Security Agency, signaling an increasingly confrontational approach

nattothoughts.substack.com

Indictments and Leaks: Different but Complementary Sources

A case study of the i-SOON indictment and leaks reveals that source information may vary but it is important to compare and evaluate information for unique insights.

nattothoughts.substack.com