Computer attacks from China occasionally cause a flurry of headlines, as did last month's hack on the New York Times. An earlier wave of media attention crested in 2010, when Google and Intel announced they'd been hacked. But these reports don't convey the unrelenting nature of the attacks. It's not a matter of isolated incidents; it's a continuous invasion.

Malware from China has inundated the Internet, targeting Fortune 500 companies, tech start-ups, government agencies, news organizations, embassies, universities, law firms, and anything else with intellectual property to protect. A recently prepared secret intelligence assessment described this month in the Washington Post found that the U.S. is the target of a massive and prolonged computer espionage campaign from China that threatens the U.S. economy. With the possible exceptions of the U.S. Department of Defense and a handful of three-letter agencies, the victims are outmatched by an enemy with vast resources and a long head start.

Eoin Treacy's view With the advent of the internet an increasing number of activities are moving online. Communications, entertainment, games, dating, banking, shopping, and trading are all now so commonplace on the web that they no longer worthy of mention. It is inevitable that the modern version of The Great Game should also move online. China and other countries will not enforce copyright protections until it is in their interest to do so.