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The Star
11-07-2025
- Politics
- The Star
‘Honeytrap' among foiled spy plots
The government announced it had cracked three spying plots, including one in which a public servant was lured by the 'seductive beauty' of a foreign agent, urging government workers to remain vigilant against overseas threats. Its state security ministry said yesterday that foreign spooks 'have been increasingly active in infiltrating and stealing secrets from China' and were targeting public officials. It did not name the countries alleged to be behind the plots. 'Individual officials have caused the damaging effects of leaking secrets due to a lack of belief, a weakened sense of discipline and a loosened awareness of rules ... harming national security and interests,' the ministry said. It described a case in which a provincial government employee surnamed Li fell into a 'meticulously designed honeytrap' while travelling overseas for work. 'Unable to resist the seductive beauty of the foreign intelligence agent,' Li was then blackmailed with 'intimate photos' and forced to hand over official documents. He was sentenced to five years in prison for espionage, according to the statement. Another case involved a municipal cadre called Hou, who secretly photographed confidential documents and sold them to foreign spy agencies to recover lost savings from a gambling addiction. Hou was later held 'criminally responsible', the ministry said, without specifying his punishment. The ministry also detailed a third case in which a high-flying young official lost his job after sharing confidential information with a relative who photographed and sent it to overseas spy agencies. 'Leaks are often hidden in the small details of our work lives,' the ministry said. 'If our ideals and beliefs are not strong ... they may eventually plummet into the criminal abyss designed by foreign spy agencies.' Beijing and Washington have long traded accusations of spying, punishable by death in China. Last month, Beijing accused the US Central Intelligence Agency of an 'absurd' attempt to recruit Chinese citizens via 'amateurish' videos posted on social media. In April, Chinese security officials said they had implicated three US 'secret agents' in cyberattacks during February's Asian Winter Games. The state security ministry also said in March that it had sentenced to death a former engineer for leaking state secrets to a foreign power. — AFP
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First Post
10-07-2025
- Politics
- First Post
China foils 3 foreign espionage plots, including a 'honeytrap' scheme
China foiled three spy plots that took over its government in recent months. One of the plots included a public servant, who was honey-trapped to leak crucial information. read more China on Thursday said that it had cracked three espionage plots, including the one in which a public servant was honey-trapped to leak crucial information. China's state security ministry noted that the public servant was lured by the 'seductive beauty' of a foreign agent. The ministry went on to urge government workers to remain vigilant against overseas threats. In recent years, Beijing has stepped up espionage warnings across the country. China have been wary of spies working for the United States and other Western nations. Interestingly, China have been notoriously running spy rings in several Western nations. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'Foreign spooks have been increasingly active in infiltrating and stealing secrets from China and were targeting public officials,' the state security ministry said in a statement. However, it did not name the countries that are allegedly behind the plot. What are the cases about? In the statement, the ministry described a case in which a provincial government employee surnamed Li fell into a 'meticulously designed honeytrap' while travelling overseas for work. 'Individual officials have caused the damaging effects of leaking secrets due to a lack of belief, a weakened sense of discipline and a loosened awareness of rules … harming national security and interests,' the ministry said. The authorities mentioned that the Chinese official was blackmailed to share sensitive information. 'Unable to resist the seductive beauty of the foreign intelligence agent,' Li was then blackmailed with 'intimate photos' and forced to hand over official documents once back in China, The Japan Times reported. As per the statement, the employee was sentenced to five years in prison for espionage. Apart from this, another case involved a municipal cadre called Hou, who secretly photographed confidential documents and sold them to foreign spy agencies to recover lost savings from a gambling addiction. The ministry mentioned that Hou was later held 'criminally responsible,' but the Chinese authorities did not specify the punishment. In terms of the third case, the ministry revealed that a high-flying young official lost his job after sharing confidential information with a relative who photographed and sent it to overseas spy agencies. 'Leaks are often hidden in the small details of our work lives,' the ministry said. 'If our ideals and beliefs are not strong … they may eventually plummet into the criminal abyss designed by foreign spy agencies,' it furthered. It is pertinent to note that Beijing and Washington have long traded accusations of espionage, a crime that is punishable by death in China. Last month, Beijing accused the US Central Intelligence Agency of an 'absurd' attempt to recruit Chinese citizens via 'amateurish' videos posted on social media. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In April this year, Chinese security officials said they had implicated three US 'secret agents' in cyberattacks during February's Asian Winter Games in the northeastern city of Harbin. In March, the state security ministry noted that it had sentenced to death a former engineer for leaking state secrets to a foreign power. Hence, China is keeping a close eye on spies operating within the country.
NDTV
10-07-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Chinese Official Honeytrapped By "Seductive Beauty" Of Foreign Spy
China said Thursday it had cracked three spying plots, including one in which a public servant was lured by the "seductive beauty" of a foreign agent, urging government workers to remain vigilant against overseas threats. Beijing has stepped up espionage warnings in recent years as relations with the United States and other Western nations have worsened. Its state security ministry said Thursday that foreign spooks "have been increasingly active in infiltrating and stealing secrets from China" and were targeting public officials. It did not name the countries alleged to be behind the plots. "Individual officials have caused the damaging effects of leaking secrets due to a lack of belief, a weakened sense of discipline and a loosened awareness of rules... harming national security and interests," the ministry said. It described a case in which a provincial government employee surnamed Li fell into a "meticulously designed honeytrap" while travelling overseas for work. "Unable to resist the seductive beauty of the foreign intelligence agent," Li was then blackmailed with "intimate photos" and forced to hand over official documents once back in China. He was sentenced to five years in prison for espionage, according to the statement. Another case involved a municipal cadre called Hou, who secretly photographed confidential documents and sold them to foreign spy agencies to recover lost savings from a gambling addiction. Hou was later held "criminally responsible", the ministry said, without specifying his punishment. The ministry also detailed a third case in which a high-flying young official lost his job after sharing confidential information with a relative who photographed and sent it to overseas spy agencies. "Leaks are often hidden in the small details of our work lives," the ministry said. "If our ideals and beliefs are not strong... they may eventually plummet into the criminal abyss designed by foreign spy agencies." Beijing and Washington have long traded accusations of espionage, punishable by death in China. Last month, Beijing accused the US Central Intelligence Agency of an "absurd" attempt to recruit Chinese citizens via "amateurish" videos posted on social media. In April, Chinese security officials said they had implicated three US "secret agents" in cyberattacks during February's Asian Winter Games in the northeastern city of Harbin. The state security ministry also said in March it had sentenced to death a former engineer for leaking state secrets to a foreign power.
HKFP
10-07-2025
- Politics
- HKFP
China says foiled foreign spying plots including ‘honeytrap'
China said Thursday it had cracked three spying plots, including one in which a public servant was lured by the 'seductive beauty' of a foreign agent, urging government workers to remain vigilant against overseas threats. Beijing has stepped up espionage warnings in recent years as relations with the United States and other Western nations have worsened. Its state security ministry said Thursday that foreign spooks 'have been increasingly active in infiltrating and stealing secrets from China' and were targeting public officials. It did not name the countries alleged to be behind the plots. 'Individual officials have caused the damaging effects of leaking secrets due to a lack of belief, a weakened sense of discipline and a loosened awareness of rules… harming national security and interests,' the ministry said. It described a case in which a provincial government employee surnamed Li fell into a 'meticulously designed honeytrap' while travelling overseas for work. 'Unable to resist the seductive beauty of the foreign intelligence agent,' Li was then blackmailed with 'intimate photos' and forced to hand over official documents once back in China. He was sentenced to five years in prison for espionage, according to the statement. Another case involved a municipal cadre called Hou, who secretly photographed confidential documents and sold them to foreign spy agencies to recover lost savings from a gambling addiction. Hou was later held 'criminally responsible', the ministry said, without specifying his punishment. The ministry also detailed a third case in which a high-flying young official lost his job after sharing confidential information with a relative who photographed and sent it to overseas spy agencies. 'Leaks are often hidden in the small details of our work lives,' the ministry said. 'If our ideals and beliefs are not strong… they may eventually plummet into the criminal abyss designed by foreign spy agencies.' Beijing and Washington have long traded accusations of espionage, punishable by death in China. Last month, Beijing accused the US Central Intelligence Agency of an 'absurd' attempt to recruit Chinese citizens via 'amateurish' videos posted on social media. In April, Chinese security officials said they had implicated three US 'secret agents' in cyberattacks during February's Asian Winter Games in the northeastern city of Harbin. The state security ministry also said in March it had sentenced to death a former engineer for leaking state secrets to a foreign power.
The Star
10-07-2025
- Politics
- The Star
China foils foreign spy plots including a ‘honey trap', urges govt workers to stay vigilant
BEIJING: China said Thursday (July 10) it had cracked three spying plots, including one in which a public servant was lured by the "seductive beauty" of a foreign agent, urging government workers to remain vigilant against overseas threats. Beijing has stepped up espionage warnings in recent years as relations with the United States and other Western nations have worsened. Its state security ministry said Thursday that foreign spooks "have been increasingly active in infiltrating and stealing secrets from China" and were targeting public officials. It did not name the countries alleged to be behind the plots. "Individual officials have caused the damaging effects of leaking secrets due to a lack of belief, a weakened sense of discipline and a loosened awareness of rules... harming national security and interests," the ministry said. It described a case in which a provincial government employee surnamed Li fell into a "meticulously designed honeytrap" while travelling overseas for work. "Unable to resist the seductive beauty of the foreign intelligence agent," Li was then blackmailed with "intimate photos" and forced to hand over official documents once back in China. He was sentenced to five years in prison for espionage, according to the statement. Another case involved a municipal cadre called Hou, who secretly photographed confidential documents and sold them to foreign spy agencies to recover lost savings from a gambling addiction. Hou was later held "criminally responsible", the ministry said, without specifying his punishment. The ministry also detailed a third case in which a high-flying young official lost his job after sharing confidential information with a relative who photographed and sent it to overseas spy agencies. "Leaks are often hidden in the small details of our work lives," the ministry said. "If our ideals and beliefs are not strong... they may eventually plummet into the criminal abyss designed by foreign spy agencies." Beijing and Washington have long traded accusations of espionage, punishable by death in China. Last month, Beijing accused the US Central Intelligence Agency of an "absurd" attempt to recruit Chinese citizens via "amateurish" videos posted on social media. In April, Chinese security officials said they had implicated three US "secret agents" in cyberattacks during February's Asian Winter Games in the northeastern city of Harbin. The state security ministry also said in March it had sentenced to death a former engineer for leaking state secrets to a foreign power. - AFP
