War by Other Means: Economic Espionage in America [Paperback]

John J. Fialka (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1999

"The best book yet on the threat to American business posed by industrial spies. . . . Historians may well turn to Fialka's book for a quick study."—John Mintz, Washington Post

In this action-filled journey through tomorrow's headlines, award-winning journalist John Fialka reveals a secret war that jeopardizes the economic security of the United States and the livelihood of millions of Americans. The battlefield is now economic rather than ideological, but espionage in the 1990s springs directly from the ruins of the Cold War spy regimes. Newly configured, the covert operations of America's enemies-and friends-threaten to hollow out the U.S. economy and siphon away the jobs and technologies we need to remain competitive in the twenty-first century.

From Russia's brazen shopping tours for U.S. secrets to the subtle art of technology "tunneling" by the Japanese, this book illuminates a loss that is widely felt, but not often seen or understood. Fialka's incisive reporting and trenchant analysis expose an attack on the American economy so deadly as to constitute a time-lapse Pearl Harbor; his book outlines the hard choices we must make if we are to survive.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

War by Other Means is a clarion call to those in important industry and policy positions in the United States to consider the very real risks of economic espionage. Companies cannot ignore a horizon crowded with challenges such as how to maintain security over operations in an age when information products--from patents to software--can be lifted at the speed of light and reproduced at virtually no cost. John Fialka, who writes for the Wall Street Journal, here records the true spy stories of foreign intelligence operatives penetrating U.S. industries to gather valuable information ranging from trade secrets to military technology. Fialka tells his story in the strong language of battle and delivers a barrage of supporting facts: names, dates, numbers, and the procedures foreign countries take to gain restricted information. This lively story will raise fresh concern about the nature of competition among international businesses as well as national intelligence agencies. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

In this well-researched, often shocking report, Fialka, who has covered industrial espionage as a Wall Street Journal reporter, unreels a series of episodes that make it read like a spy thriller, detailing how foreign competitors are stealing America's technology. According to the author, Moscow's "Operation Farewell" spent $1.4 billion a year in salaries and bribes to obtain secret details of thousands of NATO weapon systems; Russia's space shuttle was created by following documents taken from NASA. China has flooded the U.S. with spies, enabling that country to modernize its military with weapon systems that could bring it up to superpower status. Japan's efficient spy network has tapped U.S. universities, companies and research institutions, channeling a steady flow of proprietary documents, economic intelligence and biotechnology secrets to Tokyo. Agents from France, Germany, Israel, Taiwan and South Korea are also harvesting information and blueprints in the U.S., reports Fialka, who recommends a government-coordinated offensive to protect our secrets, gather intelligence abroad and safeguard U.S. competitiveness. A revealing book that we ignore at our peril.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company (March 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393318214
• ISBN-13: 978-0393318210
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #323,110 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good book in a subject area with mostly bad books, April 1, 2001

By 

J. G. Heiser (Sunninghill, Berks) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: War by Other Means: Economic Espionage in America (Paperback)

Since first popularized by Winn Schwartau, the concept of Information Warfare has tantalized and titillated. It is a fascinating idea that the wars of an information society would be fought on a digital playing field. Certainly the practice of economic espionage is not new. Reduced political tensions worldwide means that cold warriors need something to do for a living, so today, it appears that resources that were formerly applied to defense-related targets are now being redeployed against American corporations.

Hitting so close to home, and being such a morbidly fascinating subject, it has tended to attract a lot of crank authors with populist approaches. While Fialka doesn't really pull his punches, his approach is much more even-handed than many writers. This well-researched and competently written book stands well above the junk being currently produced in this subject area.

Although this text is now over four years old, it is still relatively current. For example, one who has read this book could not have been surprised at the amount of Federal attention paid to a nuclear physicist of Chinese extraction with strong ties to his native land, which has a long-standing pattern not only of economic espionage, but also of using and abusing non-professional spies. The author also gives convincing evidence to support the consistent rumors that the French have a ongoing tradition of government-sponsored economic warfare against their 'allied' partners. (As someone who has benefited from the character-building experience of a long-term relationship with a Peugeot, I remain convinced that although the French undoubtedly engage in economic espionage, Gallic pride prevents them from actually applying anything that they learn.)

This is an excellent text for helping build a mental picture of one particular class of Information Security threat. Those involved in Infosec topics will also find value in the chapters "Virtual Justice," which explains why corporations are so reluctant to report incidents of espionage, and "Surviving" which describes the lack of attention that corporations are willing to pay to security issues. As someone who has been involved in the field for over ten years, I can attest that this attitude is pervasive, and that security failures do occur. But without a greater willingness to report incidents to the authorities, the true statistics will never be known.

Given that virtually all large corporations are highly-vulnerable to attack, and given the author's supportable contention that both motivated and resourceful adversaries exist, it seems imprudent to write this book off as mere scare mongering. Since the writing of this book, the problem has only worsened.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Factual, but meandering and overly paranoid., May 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: War by Other Means: Economic Espionage in America (Hardcover)

I am familiar with many of the cases described in the book. While the book is generally factual, it has an overall alarmist and overly paranoid tone. It jumps from case to case, suggesting connections where there are none. I was a little disappointed. Still, it could serve as a useful reference for those interested in the topic.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A reader, December 27, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: War by Other Means: Economic Espionage in America (Hardcover)

Fialka' work is an excellent primer on yester-year industrial espionage(The book is a little out-dated). In fact, it still goes on, and it is just as it has been described by the title - it goes on silently.

There are various incidents that are described in great detail about the Chinese, French, and the other "Allies" who constantly spy on their friends and other industrialised nations, and this book will serve as a jolting shock to anybody who runs a Company in a competitive economy.

Great book, lucidly written, and highly recommended!