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
In one of the famously leaked chat messages among members of i-SOON – the Chinese information security company allegedly linked to the AQUATIC PANDA threat group – group leader “Shutdown” declared in 2020, “People who have attack and defense live-fire capabilities do not need degrees from elite universities.” He called for recruiting talented students from less-prestigious technical or regional educational institutions. One such institution rocketed to prominence on May 16 of this year. Qingyuan Polytechnic – a vocational school from a third-tier city1 – was one of three higher education institutes honored as Outstanding Universities of the Year for Cooperation at the China National Vulnerability Database of Information Security (CNNVD)’s 2024 Annual Work Review and Outstanding Recognition Conference.2 The other recipients were Beihang University (北京航空航天大学) and Guangzhou University (广州大学), both well-known four-year universities.
At the conference, a number of prominent information securi…
