Ostensibly in retaliation to Western media’s coverage of anti-Chinese demonstrations in Europe, the Sports Network website was hacked last Sunday. The site was defaced with the image that you see here (captured by ChristineLu.com). Repeated attacks, most probably serious denial-of-service assaults, have caused the site to be taken down. After a few days, the site was still inaccessible.

Two of CNN’s websites were also hacked, presumably by the same group. Or if not the same group, then other groups who share similar objectives, and that is to attack Western media organizations.

China has been under fire from American and European groups for its crackdown on Tibet. Recently, the Chinese government quashed a Tibetan uprising, the aim of which was to clamor for independence and self-rule. This Communist country has also been embattled lately due to highly publicized government-endorsed censorship policies covering the Internet.

In reaction to China’s strong-arming, thousands of protesters repeatedly attempted to extinguish the Olympic torch during its journey across Europe last weekend. In Paris, it was almost snuffed out five times during the torch run. (For more news on this, do a search for ‘China Olympics protest’ on cnn.com)

The hacking incident – which might only be one of many to come, some fear – was a form of retribution, although a misguided one. According to the media’s intelligence sources, the online attacks were perpetrated by private citizens eager to show their nationalistic verve. If you read the English statements in the hackers’ message, you’ll get a glimpse of what’s in their minds. It is possible they’re thinking that the anti-China protests are a one-way thing.

Do the Chinese people actually know why many Westerners are remonstrating against their totalitarian government? (Does the average mainland Chinese even realize that their government is totalitarian?) Knowing that Beijing censors the national trimedia – and the Internet, courtesy of Google – can we be certain that the Chinese are fully aware of what’s truly going on around them? It is conceivable that what the people are allowed to absorb are no more than finely-filtered news reports.

And yet, there are not a few expert programmers in China, and the West is beginning to fear that there might just be more than enough hackers around for comfort. CNN has reported in the recent past that there could be thousands of hacking-capable young Chinese in the capital alone. These are restless youth who could very well be eager to prove themselves worthy of the national honor.

China has vehemently denied supporting hacking activities by its nationals. But there have been half-rumors permeating through the Internet that successful hackers who’ve been able to infiltrate Western websites have been remunerated by their government ex post facto.

With their sheer size, the hosting of the Olympics this year, plus their unapologetic incursion into the global capitalist market, China is indeed formidable. It is a force that cannot be ignored at all. In our generation’s increasingly wired world, what could be more scary than a technologically advanced population that has no scruples against hacking? Not to mention digital piracy.