Home › BBC       04.06.2026

How China is spying on the West | Global News Podcast

Intelligence agencies have issued a warning that Chinese agents are posing as HR recruiters and consultants to trick Western government and military personnel into disclosing state secrets. The Five Eyes alliance, comprised of the US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand say Chinese spies advertise fake analyst jobs on platforms like LinkedIn, Indeed and Upwork, then try to persuade applicants to share classified or privileged information in interviews or trial reports.

A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in the UK condemned the warning, describing the accusations as "purely false" and "malicious slander".

China's supporters have pointed out that the American NSA and British GCHQ intelligence services also collect data online, as do social media and tech giants.

The BBC's security correspondent Frank Gardner tells us more about the extent of Beijing's espionage and what strategic advantage the government of Xi Jinping is trying to achieve.

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00:00 Introduction 00:36 China's fake job spy scheme 01:26 What sets this operation apart 03:00 China responds to spying allegations 03:37 Why is China spying on the West? 04:21 Gaining an edge in the AI race 05:40 China, the US and Taiwan 06:06 Western spying on China 08:02 Preserving diplomacy in spite of spying

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