❌

Reading view

US seizes 13 website domains suspected of Chinese spying

US Departmet of Justice HQ featured image

US authorities on Wednesday seized 13 internet domains they suspect were used by Chinese agents to obtain classified information from Americans with security clearances.

The US Department of Justice headquarters building in Washington, DC. Photo: US Department of Justice.
The US Department of Justice headquarters building in Washington, DC. Photo: US Department of Justice.

Last week, the Five Eyes intelligence alliance β€” composed of the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and New Zealand β€” issued a rare warning that Chinese military intelligence services were using LinkedIn and other job platforms to pry secret information.

In a statement on Wednesday, the US Department of Justice announced the seizure of domain names allegedly used by sham consulting sites to target Americans with access to classified information.

β€œToday’s seizures send a clear message that any attempts to exploit Americans trusted with access to our nation’s most sensitive information will be exposed and dismantled,” said US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro.

Roman Rozhavsky, assistant director of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division, said the seizures illustrate β€œthe lengths the Chinese government’s intelligence services will go to as they try to use AI-generated content to trick, recruit, or coerce current and former US security clearance holders into sharing sensitive information.”

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg warned Americans they should treat any offers of quick income for vague consulting β€œwith extreme caution and remain vigilant for warning signs of malicious targeting.”

The unnamed conspirators behind the websites β€œhave denied any involvement by any foreign government,” according to the Justice Department statement.

  •  

Canada’s Global Teases β€˜Private Eyes West Coast’: β€œSome Franchises Earn The Right To Come Back”

Canada’s Global is gearing up for the launch of Private Eyes West Coast and the return of detective duo Shade and Angie. Unveiled last year, the Piller/Segan spin-off of light crime drama Private Eyes has been gaining traction, with The CW acquiring the ten-parter in April. β€œIt is a dynamite franchise,” Jennifer Abrams, Corus Entertainment’s […]

  •  

10 Near-Perfect K-Dramas Nobody Remembers

With hundreds of K-dramas hitting the market each year, it's easy for even the best to fall through the cracks. Streaming services have optimized the traditional K-drama format into a shorter, more streamlined version of the same type, but that doesn't mean that shows with many filler episodes or longer paths to conclusion aren't equally good.

  •  

Chinese spies pose as recruiters to glean state secrets, Five Eyes alliance warns

LinkedIn app featured image

Chinese spies are posing as job recruiters to trick staff in western governments into disclosing sensitive information, the Five Eyes alliance of security agencies has warned.

China’s military intelligence services advertise false jobs such as foreign policy or defence analysts on platforms including LinkedIn, the spy agencies of Britain, the United States, Australia, Canada and New Zealand said jointly late Wednesday.

LinkedIn app.
LinkedIn app. Photo: Zulfugar Karimov, via Pexels.

The agents pretend to be HR consultants or employees of β€œlegitimate-looking” private consultancies or think-tanks that claim to be located outside of China.

They pressurise candidates into revealing β€œnon-public” information during the interview process, including by writing a report, the intelligence agencies said.

People with security clearance, military personnel, journalists and academics are among those targeted, the Five Eyes added.

Military staff may be asked about their roles and unit activities, home base or naval vessel.

Recruits receive anywhere from a few hundred to several thousand dollars per report, and may be offered more money in return for increasingly sensitive information, the agencies said.

They warned that β€œwhile applicants often have no direct access to classified information, even unclassified information” can be helpful to the Chinese government.

β€œCertain types of data can place the lives of frontline military or other personnel at risk, can weaken our economic prosperity, and enable interference in our democratic processes,” the agencies wrote.

They said they had identified people who had been duped by the scam, β€œleading to criminal prosecutions, job losses, and security-clearance revocation”.

Western spy agencies have repeatedly warned of the threat of espionage from China, as well as from Russia and Iran, in recent years.

Last month, two Chinese-British dual nationals were convicted by a jury in London of spying on Hong Kong dissidents on Beijing’s behalf. They are awaiting sentencing.

  •  
❌