Intelligence: the scale of Chinese espionage overwhelms Western governments

There are multiple accusations of espionage that various Western governments and intelligence agencies have attributed to China .

According to some reports, the Asian country presided over by Xi Jinping is resorting to methods like computer hacking to access confidential information .

This, as a strategy for weaken rival powers and strengthen its economy, U.S. officials said. USA At The Wall Street Journal .

Alerts were presented frequently and They mainly concern both the North American country and other European countries. .

However, from Beijing They have previously denied using cyberattacks to access public or private networks abroad.

Officials consulted by the aforementioned American newspaper said that The scale of its operations exceeds Western governments .

And although some agencies have publicly warned of the Asian country’s alleged spying actions, containing this scenario is positioned as a complex objective .

This was ensured at Newspaper Calder Walton, a national security expert at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, who said thatThe latter situation is largely explained by the fact that China is deeply involved in the global economy. .

Thus, according to specialists, certain Western governments They are seeking a balance to continue doing business with Beijing, while denouncing alleged acts of espionage. .

In September, the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) reported that a company linked to the Chinese government had hacked around 260,000 internet-connected devices .

They explained that included cameras and routers in North America country, UK, France and Romania among others.

At the same time, a US Congressional investigation to which the aforementioned media had access revealed that Chinese loading cranes used in seaports had technology to be controlled remotely secretly.

In October, U.S. officials said a group of hackers, linked to China, had carried out a cyberattack that could have allowed them to access information from systems the federal government uses for wiretap requests authorized by the courts.

From the Newspaper They claim that both the Chinese government press office and the ministries of State Security, Public Security and Defense, They did not respond to requests for comment on these reports. .

It is assumed that China-backed hackers outnumber FBI’s entire IT staff, at least 50 to 1 as detailed by the American agency.

On the other hand, according to representatives of a European agency consulted by the aforementioned media, it is estimated that China’s intelligence gathering and security operations could involve up to 600,000 people .

At the Munich Security Conference in February, FBI Director Christopher Wray said that “China’s hacking program is larger than that of all other major nations combined” .

At the start of 2024, the government of Britain accuses China-linked hackers of accessing its voter registration records which included the addresses of approximately 40 million people.

Likewise, in September, U.S. prosecutors reported that five Chinese University of Michigan graduates were found taking photos near military vehicles. .

They stated that the situation occurred in the middle of the night, near where the U.S. National Guard was conducting a training exercise involving military personnel from Taiwan .

After being detected, individuals They said they were looking at the stars as he knew Newspaper.

In May, intelligence officials from Canada says China likely tried to interfere in last two federal elections even transporting Chinese students to vote and ensure the nomination of a preferred candidate.

Also in the first half of 2024, A businessman linked to the Chinese Communist Party has been convicted in Australia of trying to influence a government minister. by donating approximately $25,000 to a hospital.

In the same way, seven suspected spies linked to the Chinese government arrested in separate operations in Germany and the United Kingdom .

The respective actions of which they were accused were from acquiring a special laser to send without authorization to the Asian country to spying on the European Parliament and attacking dissidents as saved by Newspaper.

These are just some of the situations in which the authorities assume the participation of spies linked to the Chinese government.

The FBI charged earlier this year that China hacked hundreds of routers and used them to infiltrate US water and energy networks. .

Information collected by the aforementioned media indicates that senior officials of the North American country maintain that This could interrupt their ability to respond to an episode of international crisis. .

Such a situation could, for example, be a possible direct attack on Taiwan by China .

It is worth recalling that President Joe Biden stated that The United States would support its defense in the event of an invasion .

For his part, The country led by Xi Jinping considers Taiwan part of its territory and has intensified military exercises of its troops in the South China Sea.

In full tension around the said territory, There are fears that an offensive by the Asian giant could also involve American forces. .

Previously, in December 2023, Congress has barred the Pentagon from using any seaport worldwide that deploys China’s cargo data platform, Logink. .

This, because They assume this could put classified information at risk. .

Western intelligence officials told the American newspaper that China’s spying methods are not traditional and which differ from those of other powers such as Russia.

They stated that they did not seem to care whether their agents were discovered and that It is unusual for them to seek to change them when arrested .

Added to this is the fact that the investigation into their activities is very complex, since Its intelligence operations are decentralized and spread across a vast network of agencies and companies. both state and private.

Likewise, they stated that operate largely autonomously and with seemingly random mechanisms edges that make it difficult for their systems to penetrate.