Five Eyes intelligence agencies issue joint bulletin alleging Chinese military use of job sites to recruit Western personnel

Intelligence agencies from the UK, US, Australia, Canada and New Zealand released a bulletin on Wednesday warning that Chinese military intelligence services are using job websites to target government and military personnel for recruitment. The document, published jointly by ASIO, CSIS, FBI, MI5 and NZSIS, states that China’s military intelligence services are using an increasingly wide array of professional networking sites and online job platforms to target Five Eyes government and military personnel and anyone with access to classified or privileged information.

The bulletin describes how intelligence officers or their affiliates pose as employees of private consultancies, thinktanks or human resources firms and place online job advertisements for foreign policy and defence analysts or similar roles.

Successful candidates are pressured to provide ‘non-public’ information for unspecified clients who are associated with the Chinese government, the agencies said. China’s military intelligence services seek to acquire privileged military, political and economic intelligence that can provide China with a strategic and tactical advantage over the Five Eyes, according to the bulletin.

The agencies listed the types of workers who may be targeted, including security clearance holders specialising in defence, foreign affairs and security and intelligence; military personnel stationed in the Indo-Pacific region who have knowledge of regional capabilities and general activities; and people with indirect or peripheral access to government information, including academics, journalists, freelance writers, thinktank employees, or anyone with links to the defence, security, policy and economic sectors.

After posting the adverts, the agents scrutinise applicants’ CVs to find who might have access to useful information, the bulletin said. Interviews are done virtually with the recruiters concealing their true identities, questioning candidates for key details including access to government contacts or military activities.

The job hopefuls are then asked to write a trial report on topics such as China’s relations with other countries, defence or trade, before being pushed for more sensitive information as the conversation moves to encrypted messaging platforms.

Recruits are paid between a few hundred and up to several thousand dollars a report on payment platforms including PayPal, Payoneer, Zelle, Skrill and Wise, as well as Western Union, e-transfer and cryptocurrency. The bulletin warns that anyone involved in the unauthorised disclosure of information could face prosecution for spying.

MI5 separately warned that Chinese spies are targeting UK government and military staff on job websites including LinkedIn.

Posing as recruitment consultants, the agents have sought to lure at least 20,000 Britons with potential job offers, MI5 stated. The platforms used include LinkedIn, Indeed and Upwork. Chinese agents purport to be HR consultants for legitimate-looking companies that appear to be located elsewhere in the world.

The agencies warn that even indirect access to government policy or military strategies and capabilities could compromise national security.