German Intelligence Warns of Increased Chinese Cyberspying (apnews.com) 75
The head of Germany's domestic intelligence agency has warned that China allegedly is using social networks to try to cultivate lawmakers and other officials as sources. From a report: Hans-Georg Maassen said his agency, known by its German acronym BfV, believes more than 10,000 Germans have been targeted by Chinese intelligence agents posing as consultants, headhunters or researchers, primarily on the social networking site LinkedIn. "This is a broad-based attempt to infiltrate in particular parliaments, ministries and government agencies," Maassen said.
Of course the communist chinese are spying (Score:2, Troll)
They should not be allowed to trade with us.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Sure, sure. Same goes for the US, since they were caught spying on Germany, and anyone that deals with the US and Germany, since we have spy operations coming out of Hamburg. I'm with you 100%. This shit needs to stop.
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It all seems like such a waste of effort, much like having a standing army - it's a game you only play because everyone else is playing it, and it's only risk-free to stop if everyone stops (which you can't confirm without playing).
It's a game of control that mainly benefits the ruling classes - without it there'd be more economic productivity to put towards making all us peasants that much more content, but less ability to control concentration of wealth.
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Espionage == communism, I get it?
So ... First we take Manhatten, then we take Berlin... [theguardian.com].
False Flag But Doesn't Matter (Score:1)
Here's the thing. This claim is win-win for the agency making it. Social media is a giant mechanism by which nations can spy not only on each other but also on their own people, very cost-effectively. So Chinese spying may or may not be a serious concern--it's in the interests of German intelligence to play it up as much as possible. It will get them support to increase their own budget and operations...
AND it will encourage political support for much stronger enforcement of "real name policies" and the con
Re: False Flag But Doesn't Matter (Score:2)
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If I replace the word "German" with the word "Yankee", won't your comment remain valid?
Everybody with the means and motive spies (Score:5, Insightful)
Next tell me water is wet, I'm waiting on that breaking news with great anticipation!
Intelligence services do intelligence and counter-intelligence work on behalf of domestic political and corporate interests. Specific instances of this are made public when convenient for propaganda purposes.
Unless you really think none of the EU nations is spying on the Chinese...
Re: Everybody with the means and motive spies (Score:4, Interesting)
Re: That didn't take long (Score:2)
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Our main opposition party have a Chinese spy among their ranks, but we're not allowed to talk about it.
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However, things are going to get worse all over. Here in America, you have to be born in American land (states, territory, or military base) to be able to be president/VP. So, now, there are 10's of 1000s of CHinese that have come over here for the last 15 years that are 2-3 months pregnant and then return back to CHina with their child having an American citizenship. So, starting in 5 years, they can run for congress, and in 20 years, run for president, all while having been raised in C
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Where I have an issue with Trump is that the intelligence world refused him, pence, and his original admin ANY security clearance. They were all considered traitors. Even at this time, the intel world severely limits what intel Trump/Pence get. Only the 3 generals get full access. And note that Flynn was a retired general who had his security clearance revoked while on the trump campaign trail .
This speaks volumes about all of them. VERY LOUDLY.
A
Re: Everybody with the means and motive spies (Score:2)
Sounds like it's the intelligence agencies who have a problem if they are refusing information to the elected President.
Re: Everybody with the means and motive spies (Score:2)
Re: Everybody with the means and motive spies (Score:2)
What you're describing sounds a lot like a coup. Is that what you're advocating?
I have a lot more faith in elections and the Constitution, than I do in a bunch of secret laws about secrecy, interpreted by secret kangaroo courts. What about you - do you believe in democracy?
Re: Everybody with the means and motive spies (Score:2)
Re: Everybody with the means and motive spies (Score:2)
Look asshole - if you and your buddies have some damning evidence, then by all means shout it from the rooftops. The Constitution has explicit means to deal with "high crimes". The American people will be on your side.
But until you present some real powerful evidence, your shrill cries of "treason!!1!" sound like nothing but low partisan rancour. Claims of "he's a traitor, just TRUST US" sound like obvious bullshit, transparent to anyone of normal intelligence.
Secret scumbags on secret committees don't get
Re: Everybody with the means and motive spies (Score:2)
Nah. (Score:5, Interesting)
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>They are just taking a different tack.
I prefer the Russian method of having extremely sexy women sleep with men and then waiting for them to say something stupid to impress the women.
I mean, what, the Chinese are going to give me a job offer via LinkedIn, but the Russians send a hot woman to my bed? I know which agency I'm going to turn for.
(Sadly, Putin's never targeted me in a Russian honeypot operation... or my wife has a really solid cover and has stuck around despite me never giving her anything
Re: Nah. (Score:2)
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>Maybe Putin did send hot woman, but your wife got to her first?
Well then, all Putin has to do is trade me the 'incriminating video' the FSB would undoubtedly have made in return for everything I know.
Re: Nah. (Score:2)
After we're done investigating Russian meddling (Score:2, Funny)
we'll have to do another whole investigation in to the Trump family ties to Gina.
But you missed the fun part (Score:2, Interesting)
When, not if, they reverse engineer the Cambridge Analytica approach, they will be able to use the network to engineer elections, policy, and spending for any number of nations on the planet.
They are in it "for the long game" and nobody else is. Their battlefield they currently fight on is best described in this way:
"What if there was a war, and only one side came"
Every American politician must fight with no less than half of their time, money, and energy for re-election every two years. Their decisions a
Where is the problem ? (Score:2)
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But what China is up to is trying to work their way into companies. Quite the difference.
Re: Where is the problem ? (Score:2)
Funny Fact (Score:2)
Funny Fact, post a slightly anti-russian comment on german forums and you will get swarmed by hundreds of pro-russian trolls.
Post whatever about anybody else and noone cares.
China is just doing the old game of "intelligence gathering". At least they are not meddling with local politics.
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Re: Funny Fact (Score:2)
Buying chinese gets you only one backdoor per item (Score:2)
But at least, if you buy Chinese hardware from Chinese traders, you usually end up with only one backdoor in your hardware - the one mandated by the Chinese gouvernment.
If you buy US hardware, there instead will a multitude of backdoors come with it, readily installed: One installed by the US brand owner, for all sorts of commercial reasons. One installed by the Chinese manufacturer, during manufacturing, on behalf of the Chinese agencies. And
Make networks secure again (Score:2)
Domestic police want to spy on all the new random people just wondering around.
Interesting people the police know nothing about and who have no valid documents.
Collect it all only works if the domestic gov/mil/telco networks are secure and only searchable by a nations police and security services.
Opening the "internet" to the world and then setting crypto keys as junk to spy on everyone domestical
Re: Make networks secure again (Score:2)
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The spies enter as contractors, NGO's, gov and under cover of the private sector. Second generation spies with all the cover of been totally loyal citizens.
The advanced capabilities are in well connected people talking to desperate political leaders. They don't need to so risk tapping and don't get caught as they are just talking not digging