A rare joint address by the heads of MI5 and the Federal Bureau of Investigation warned Wednesday of China’s commercial espionage efforts in the West.
MI5 Director General Ken McCallum and FBI Director Chris Wray told an audience of officials and business executives at Thames House that Chinese spies remain a threat in both countries.
According to McCallum, MI5, the British domestic intelligence service, has expanded its operations in China.
“Today we’re running seven times as many investigations as we were in 2018,” he said.
“We plan to grow as much again, while also maintaining significant effort against Russian and Iranian covert threats.”
It appears that Chinese intelligence takes a slow and patient approach to developing sources and gaining access to information, and few of those targeted are aware that they are being tracked.
Chris Wray said China’s threat was a “complex, enduring and pervasive danger” to both Britain and the United States, as well as other allies.
China is “set on stealing your technology, whatever it is that makes your industry tick, and using it to undercut your business and dominate your market,” Wray said.
Moreover, the two warned that an invasion of Taiwan, which Beijing views as a breakaway province, would severely disrupt global trade.
Businesses were urged to remain alert and report any potential threats.
“The Chinese Communist Party is interested in our democratic, media and legal systems. Not to emulate them, sadly, but to use them for its gain,” said McCallum.
To view the joint public speech, click here