Enjoying this article? Unusual interest in information outside the scope of assigned duties We remain concerned that groups such as the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS) and al Qaeda have the intent to carry out large-scale attacks in the U.S. for Us, The CCPs Organization Department makes all senior personnel appointments. Law.com Compass delivers you the full scope of information, from the rankings of the Am Law 200 and NLJ 500 to intricate details and comparisons of firms financials, staffing, clients, news and events. The term APT is commonly used in reference to the cyber threat posed by foreign intelligence services, or hackers working on behalf of such entities, but is not limited just to this and can equally be applied to other threat actors such as organized crime syndicates and those involved in traditional espionage. The scope of the criminal activity, including evidence of involvement by a foreign government, foreign agent, or foreign instrumentality The degree of economic injury to the trade secret owner The . The category of traditional espionage can be seen at 18 percent; but is considerably lower when Taiwan is removed as a PRC intelligence target. Terrorists in ungoverned spacesboth physical and virtualreadily disseminate propaganda and training materials to attract easily influenced individuals around the world to their cause. The two use similar language to talk about China, but that doesn't mean their positions are the same. We continue to actively coordinate with our private and public partners to pierce the veil of anonymity surrounding cyber based crimes. Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence).A person who commits espionage is called an espionage agent or spy. One might expect poor tradecraft from nonprofessional intelligence entities such as individuals, companies, and SOEs. China is drawing lessons from Russias invasion of Ukraine. But universities do need to take appropriate precautions to ensure that China is not able to use academic collaboration to steal U.S. intellectual property or engage in other activities that might harm U.S. national security. I urge the government to continue its existing lines of effort, including continuing to ensure that U.S. telecommunications networks are robustly defended against Chinese unconventional espionage and to continue aggressively prosecuting Chinas espionage efforts. , Statement Before the House Homeland Security Committee. https://www.law.com/newyorklawjournal/2022/12/07/setbacks-prosecuting-trump-allies-highlight-challenges-in-foreign-influence-cases/. Similarly, even as the U.S. increases pressure on Chinas unconventional espionage, we should make sure that we do not inadvertently shut down or prevent valuable academic study, research and development, and other activities that benefit the U.S. For example, the U.S. derives major benefits from the hundreds of thousands of highly-skilled foreigners, including from China, who come to the U.S. to study, to work, and to start businesses. Is there an need to share? View All Articles & Multimedia. Removing markings. Despite the statutes broad language, the DOJ has faced significant hurdles in pursuing 951 prosecutions outside the traditional espionage context, and particularly where the alleged foreign agents activity involves ostensibly legitimate international business dealings. The FBI uses all lawful investigative techniques and methods to combat these terrorist threats to the United States. Each of these technologies is identified as apriority requirementin Chinas State Council2015 strategic plan Made in China 2025.. The charges included acting as an agent of a foreign government without notifying the attorney general, a charge the Justice Department has referred to as "espionage lite," a violation of . On the military side, the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) General Staff Headquarters, Second Department is responsible for collecting military information, including related foreign technology. This wide variance in professional tradecraft likely indicates MSS suffers from lack of standardized training, security awareness, operational oversight, and case management. The EEA covers both theft of trade secrets, which can benefit any outside entity that does not own the intellectual property, and economic espionage, which has additional burden of proof. A 2018 National Counterintelligence and Security Center (NCSC) report on foreign economic espionage in cyberspace stated that in addition to China, Russia and Iran were engaging in significant cyber-enabled economic espionage activities. The second major U.S. government response has been increasingly aggressive Justice Department efforts to prosecute Chinese spies. Cleared contractor facility If you feel you are being solicited for information, which of the following should you do? The activity highlighted includes a group we track as Threat Activity Group 16 (TAG-16), which has compromised several high-profile military and government organizations across Southeast Asia throughout 2021 using custom malware families such as FunnyDream and Chinoxy. In the developing phase the foreign intelligence officer attempts to establish a close relationship with the target. For the United States, the problem is not these recent cases. As members of this Committee know, for many years the Department of Justice expended too little energy enforcing FARA, resulting in an explosion both here in Washington and across the country of unregistered agents working on behalf of foreign governments. While continued counterterrorism pressure has degraded the groups Afghanistan-Pakistan senior leadership, in the near term, al Qaeda is more likely to focus on building its international affiliates and supporting small-scale, readily achievable attacks in key regions such as east and west Africa. The goal of cyber espionage, which may also be referred to as cyber spying, is to provide the attacker with information that gives them advantages over competing companies or governments. Figure 1: Categories of Chinese Espionage. Economic espionage, which is mainly conducted by private companies or individuals, makes up 23.5 percent of cases. An adversary conducts activities with precision that indicates prior knowledge. U.S. intelligence, security, and law enforcement apparatus is just starting, 20 years later, to catch on. Cyber Attacks, Potential espionage indicators (PEIs) are activities by an individual who may have volunteered or been recruited by a foreign entity as a writing espionage agent. $500,000 fine, and/or not more than 15 years in Federal prison About Us| These criminals have also increased the sophistication of their schemes, which are more difficult to detect and more resilient to disruption than ever. In approximately 60 cases I reviewed, Chinese companies or individuals were acting unilaterally for commercial benefit only. In addition to FTOs, domestic violent extremists collectively pose a steady threat of violence and economic harm to the United States. Most widely reported these days are attempts by adversarieshoping to reach a wide swath of Americans covertly from outside the United Statesto use false personas and fabricated stories on social media platforms to discredit U.S. individuals and institutions. For example, the Trump Administration and this Congress have taken action to restrict the use of Chinese-made network equipment in U.S. telecommunications networks over concern that such equipment could facilitate Chinese espionage in the U.S. Fines Law.com Compass includes access to our exclusive industry reports, combining the unmatched expertise of our analyst team with ALMs deep bench of proprietary information to provide insights that cant be found anywhere else. Peter Harrell. In addition to these Executive Branch actions, companies and Congress have played an important role in Americas response. The European conflict has laid bare several vulnerabilities in the TNI's modernization plans. This initiative is a welcome step and I commend the Justice Department and the National Security Division for launching it. Sixty-three people were killed and thousands injured. The FBI is engaged in a myriad of efforts to combat cyber threats, from improving threat identification and information sharing inside and outside of the government to developing and retaining new talent, to examining the way we operate to disrupt and defeat these threats. Get FBI email alerts Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms. Hostile actors conducting cyber espionage can target the government, military, business and individuals. procuring supplies for terrorist organizations Espionage, as that term is traditionally used, involves trained intelligence professionals These malign activities can include assassinations, kidnappings and disinformation operations, alongside traditional espionage activities, but with far more aggressive use of proxies: Think of . Virtually every national security threat and crime problem the FBI faces is cyber-based or facilitated. If this is in fact the case then MSS performance is not likely to improve anytime soon. SOE espionage activities show a wide variance in tradecraft. Such tactics make coordination with all of our partners, including international law enforcement partners, essential. Unexplained or undue affluence We have also been confronting a surge in terrorist propaganda and training available via the Internet and social media. The act of securing information of a military or political nature that a competing nation holds secret. They would also generally restrict those companies ability to sell products based on stolen IP not only to the United States, but also to other countries around the world. If Beijing sees no path to a cooperative economic relationship with Washington and instead believes that it will face mounting U.S. pressure regardless of any concessions Beijing may offer, Beijing will have little incentive to curb its efforts to steal U.S. technology. Economic Espionage Act of. An analysis ofoperational activities reveals a wide range of tradecraft practices (see Figure 5): As illustrated, the most frequently employed elements of tradecraft include using false names or documents to ship information or technology. Illegal downloads. This represents a new and different threat to Americas long-term leadership and must be addressed forcefully. The message is not tailored solely to those who overtly express signs of radicalization. Victims of Chinas espionage efforts include major defense and aerospace companies, pharmaceutical firms, technology research companies, manufacturers, and universities. Taking short trips. Concurrent with this growth, foreign direct investment (FDI) in the U.S. has increasingly become a national security concern, as hostile nations leverage FDI to buy U.S. assets that will advance their intelligence, military, technology, and economic goals at the expense of U.S. national security. In addition, the same erratic performance by recruited agents illustrates nonstandardized agent training, protocols, and practices. In 2018, CCP leader and Chinese President Xi Jinping directed all SOEs to amend their bylaws to ensure the concepts of service to the CCP as well as national and economic security are placed above profit. Just last month, a new law reorganized the cyber security operations of DHS in order to improve their effectiveness, including establishing DHSs Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. U.S. Trade Representative Lighthizer and President Trump need to demand major, systematic changes in a range of Chinese trade abuses before relenting on the tariffs and other measures the U.S. has imposed. Based on an actual case, The Company Man: Protecting Americas Secrets illustrates how one U.S. company was targeted by foreign spies and how that company worked with the FBI to bring the perpetrators to justice. Foreign travel of short duration Nearly half of Chinas espionage efforts target U.S. military and space technologies. Outright theft of U.S. and western intellectual property (IP) is a key piece of Chinas strategy, but it is only a piece. The minimal application of tradecraft is expected, as these cases typically do not involve professional intelligence operatives (either case officers or agents). Members of the Committee may have seen recent press reports about marketing firms and hedge funds buying cell phone location data showing the near-real time locations of tens of millions of Americans going about their daily routines. An eye-witness report by two investigative journalists on the ground in Prato, Italy. As the threat to harm the United States and U.S. interests evolves, we must adapt and confront these challenges, relying heavily on the strength of our federal, state, local, and international partnerships. This was a narrow agreement in that it did not preclude the theft of intellectual property for other purposes, such as for improving defense capabilities, or the theft of U.S. government information, but it did at least temporarily represent a step by China toward reducing its espionage against U.S. commercial targets. A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. Sanctions are more of a marathon than a sprint, and the long-term picture looks much more promising than the short-term one. By We take all potential threats to public and private sector systems seriously and will continue to investigate and hold accountable those who pose a threat in cyberspace. The International Trade Commission (ITC) has authority to ban the import of products that are made with stolen U.S. IP, and in recent years U.S. companies have successfully petitioned the ITC to ban such products from entering the U.S. market. For example, if China purchased this information, it could cross-reference location information with data it stole from the Office of Personnel Management about U.S. government employees, or against public record data about corporate executives. The Director of National Intelligence report, Foreign Economic Espionage in Cyberspace (2018) identifies key industries and technologies that are frequent targets of foreign espionage. The U.S. government has steadily increased its response to the threat of China's unconventional espionage. Chinese economic espionage, on the other hand, is an unconventional threat and requires an unconventional response. The U.S. Intelligence Community is a federation of executive branch agencies and organizations that work separately and together to conduct intelligence activities necessary for the conduct of foreign relations and the protection of the national security of the United States. On a daily basis, these actors seek to steal our state secrets, our trade secrets, our technology, and the most intimate data about our citizensthings of incredible value to all of us and of great importance to the conduct of our government business and our national security. The first line of response has been to encourage companies to harden their networks against cyber intrusions and to bolster defenses against other types IP theft, such as by corporate insiders. The. The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation's detailed public threat assessments could be a model for Canada's spy service on explaining the elements of foreign interference, added Wesley. It is time for Pakistans political and military establishment to wake up and reconcile with the fact that they cant negotiate their way to peace. DHS is also investing in research into technologies and public-private partnerships that may be able to improve cybersecurity practices and in education and outreach programs designed to improve corporate cybersecurity practices. Counterintelligence is defined in Executive Order 12333, as amended, is "information gathered and activities conducted to protect against espionage, other intelligence activities, sabotage, or assassinations conducted by or on behalf of foreign governments or elements thereof, foreign organizations or foreign persons, or assassinations conducted by or on behalf of foreign governments or elements thereof, foreign organizations or forgiven persons, or international terrorist activities. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. The division has a wide range of responsibilities. I left the Members with what I thought was an ominous warning: Do something about this now or youll be calling me back in 20 years screaming: My God, how did this happen? Well, they never called me back, but if recent FBI arrests are any indication, the problem has gotten worse a lot worse. 611 et seq., which makes it illegal to act as an agent of a foreign principal by engaging in political activities in the United States without prior registration. Which of the following is an example of an anomaly? The Economic Espionage Act (EEA)1996 Public Law 104-294, 110 Stat. Never answer questions you feel uncomfortable 13757 (2016) that authorize the Treasury Department to impose sanctions on entities that engage in various forms of cyber hacking and on companies that steal trade secrets or other high-value IP via cyber-enabled means, or which benefit from such stolen IP. Several high-level conclusions can be drawn from the cases representing the last 20 years of Chinese espionage operations. Asia, Southeast The Espionage Act of 1917 is a United States federal law enacted on June 15, 1917, shortly after the United States entered World War I. Beware of being overheard Asia, Asia 2 Commencement. First, I firmly believe that the U.S. is more likely to be able to effectively combat Chinese unconventional espionage if the U.S. holds out the prospect for cooperation in the U.S.-Chinese overall relationship. If the United States does not continue to make and expand R&D here in the U.S., China will eventually overtake our technological edge, regardless of how effective we are at preventing China from stealing, buying, or otherwise acquiring U.S. IP. It has not been as easy for the United States to gain buy-in as some in Washington expected. CCP embedded committees manage all actions within directly managed SOEs. Now, more than eight years since the climax of the Cold War, the threat of industrial and economic espionage has percolated once again to the forefront, and the tools of the intelligence collector . What Joseph L. Rini Knows, Attorney Rachel Y. Marshall A Pillar of Strength for the Community, SpotDraft Raises $26 Million in Series A Funding for AI-Powered Legal Software, Access to the entire ALM network of websites, Unlimited access to the ALM suite of newsletters, Build custom alerts on any search topic of your choosing. But universities risk being fertile place for this kind of espionage, given the open, international, and collaborative nature of most university research and universities legitimate interest in encouraging international collaboration. As members of the Senate know, over the summer, Congress enacted the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act (FIRRMA), which overhauled the CFIUS review process for foreign investments in the United States. Our adversary seeks to expand its Fifth, I would encourage Congress to carefully study proposals to enable U.S. companies who are victims of Chinese economic espionage to hack back. There are significant concerns about hacking back proposals but I believe the concept merits careful study. Your article was successfully shared with the contacts you provided. Lastly, in 27 cases, roughly 9 percent of the total, case officers and/or agents displayed a more sophisticated level of tradecraft. Provide non-descript answers Although the Obama administration never sanctioned any Chinese individuals or companies using these authorities, it did use the potent threat of sanctions, as well as criminal prosecutions and significant high-level diplomatic engagement, to convince China to enter into a 2015 agreement in which Chinese President Xi agreed that China would not knowingly support cyber-enabled theft intellectual property for commercial gain. However, other influence operations may include targeting U.S. officials and other U.S. persons through traditional intelligence tradecraft; criminal efforts to suppress voting and provide illegal campaign financing; concealing efforts to influence U.S. government activities, cyber attacks against voting infrastructure, along with computer intrusions targeting elected officials and others; and a whole slew of other kinds of influence, like both overtly and covertly manipulating news stories, spreading disinformation, leveraging economic resources, and escalating divisive issues. No tradecraft, with parties using open communications and true names; Use of false names and/or third parties to transmit information and ship materials; Public and commercial encryption, hosting meetings in China to avoid detection; Tailor made devices or techniques, use of third countries, use of in-country cutouts to transmit information. Over the last five years, I compiled and analyzed 274 cases of Chinese espionage that have occurred since the year 2000. That Act prohibits the theft of trade secrets in which the perpetrator acts intending or knowing that the offense will benefit a foreign government. China has aggressively targeted technologies central to its Made in China 2025 industrial strategy, a fact that should come as little surprise given the importance China attaches to the strategy.
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traditional espionage activity includes foreign government