China is reported to be using all kinds of methods, from social media to cyber attacks, for espionage; and also to spread misinformation sow confusion in countries it considers its adversaries and to influence elections to help bring into power governments sympathetic to China. Governments in different countries have taken preventive measures to thwart these attempts at cyber attacks by China, the most well-known of which has been the move of the U.S. government to ban the social media app TikTok.
Lately, the German government had summoned the Chinese ambassador in Berlin and warned against attempts at cyber attacks on German establishments. It was a rare act on the part of the German government. The last time the Chinese ambassador in Berlin had been summoned to the German Foreign Ministry was in 1989, after the Tiananmen Square massacre.
An investigation carried out by the German government has determined that “Chinese state actors” were responsible for a cyber attack on the national office for cartography of Germany in 2021, reports from Berlin say. German Foreign Ministry spokesperson Sebastian Fischer has been quoted as saying that the German government has “reliable information from our intelligence services” about the source of the attack on the Federal Agency for Cartography and Geodesy, which was carried out “for the purpose of espionage.”
German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser has said in a strongly-worded statement: “This serious cyber attack on a federal agency shows how big the danger is from Chinese cyber attacks and spying. We call on China to refrain from and prevent such cyber attacks. These cyber attacks threaten the digital sovereignty of Germany and Europe.”
The German Interior Ministry has said that part of the network of the cartography agency was compromised but further malware was not found. The attacker was successfully kicked out of the network. The agency which provides official geo-data for Germany undertook a series of measures to improve its IT security.
This is not the first instance of China trying to spy on German establishments. Last April, three people were arrested in Germany on suspicion of spying for China and arranging to transfer information on technology with potential military uses. An assistant to a prominent German lawmaker in the European Parliament was arrested on suspicion of spying for China. Germany has also announced lately that it will bar the use of critical components made by Chinese companies Huawei and ZTE in core parts of the country’s 5G networks.
Last May, the British government, too, summoned the Chinese ambassador in London after three people were charged with assisting the intelligence service of Hong Kong, a former British colony. Dissidents in Hong Kong mostly choose Great Britain as their country of refuge when they want to escape from the island city which has been deprived of democracy and freedom under Chinese rule.
On instruction from British Foreign Secretary David Cameron, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office reprimanded the Chinese ambassador “that the recent pattern of behaviour directed by China against the U.K., including cyber attacks, reports of espionage links and the issuing of bounties is not acceptable.” The three people were arrested for assisting a foreign intelligence service and in foreign interference. One of them worked at Heathrow Airport for the Border Force U.K., one a volunteer special constable with the City of London Police and the other a Home Office immigration enforcement officer. All of them were thus in positions that helped them to keep track of the arrival of émigrés to the U.K. from Hong Kong.
Last year, there was the allegation that a researcher in the British Parliament was spying for China. Earlier this year, the U.K. had accused “Chinese state-affiliated actors” of cyber attacks on the Electoral Commission of Britain and on parliamentarians critical of the Chinese government. According to a Guardian report last March, the personal details of about 40 million voters were believed to have been accessed by China in a cyber attack on the Electoral Commission. About 43 British M.P.s and peers had also been targeted for cyber attacks at the behest of the Chinese government. In Canada, China interfered in the elections in 2019 and 2021, according to the findings of official agencies in Canada. The interference was described as strategic, aimed to support candidates perceived as pro-China or neutral on issues concerning the Chinese government.
Last April, a new U.S. law put Chinese tech giant ByteDance on a deadline to divest from the video platform TikTok or have it banned from the U.S. American lawmakers set a nine-month deadline on ByteDance to sell TikTok on national security grounds; saying TikTok could be used by the Chinese government for espionage and propaganda as long as it was owned by ByteDance. A New York Times report says that lawmakers and regulators in the West have increasingly expressed concern that TikTok and its parent company ByteDance may put sensitive user data, like location information, into the hands of the Chinese government. They have pointed out that laws allow the Chinese government secretly to demand data from Chinese companies and citizens for intelligence-gathering operations. They are also worried that China can use the content recommendation of the social media platform to fuel misinformation; as witnessed in the Israel – Hamas war and in U.S. presidential elections. TikTok is reported to have fuelled the spread of anti-Semitism. ByteDance has, however, challenged the U.S. law in the American court.
India, too, banned TikTok in 2020 along with 200 other Chinese apps; claiming that some of these were secretly transmitting users’ data to foreign servers. Britain and its Parliament, Australia, Canada, France, the executive arm of the European Parliament and New Zealand Parliament have also banned the app from official devices. In Taiwan, TikTok has been declared a national security threat. Though TikTok has denied leaking user data, U.S. lawmakers are concerned that ByteDance may leak American user data to the Chinese government if the Chinese government forces them to do so; as required under the laws of the Chinese Communist Party.
A report from Hong Kong says a suspected Chinese state-sponsored hacking group has stepped up its targeting of Taiwanese organisations, particularly those in government, education, technology and diplomacy, according to a finding of cyber security intelligence company Recorded Future.
American investigations reveal that China is using “connected car technology” for the purpose of espionage. The U.S. has started an investigation if Chinese vehicles carry national security risks. Vehicles collect large amounts of data on their drivers and passengers and regularly use their cameras and sensors to record detailed information on U.S. infrastructure, the investigations have revealed. Autonomous vehicles can even be piloted or disabled remotely. “China’s policies could flood our markets with its vehicles, posing a risk to our national security. I am not going to let it happen,” U.S. President Joe Biden has said.
India, too, has rejected a proposal for a major investment by Chinese manufacturer of electrical vehicles BYD. Indian Industry Minister Pijush Goyal has recently made it clear that the Indian Government has no plan to rethink its policy of not encouraging direct investments from Chinese companies in India. Indian auto major Mahindra and Mahindra has dismissed reports that the company is seeking the approval of the government to invest $3 billion with China’s Shaanxi group.