Overseas agents recruit youth to access databases, journals

Military enthusiasts may find themselves caught up in real life danger, as their online activities have reportedly become one major way for overseas intelligence agencies.

State security department in Guangdong province said on May 4 that a resident surnamed Li from Sichuan Province was sentenced to 10 years'imprisonment for releasing military secrets to an overseas intelligence agent, People's Daily reported.

The intelligence agent, named "Fei Ge," which means "Brother Fei," reportedly contacted Li via the QQ instant messenger service and offered 3,000 yuan ($481) monthly payment for information.

Li was then asked to subscribe to internal military publications that could only be reached by Chinese mainland citizens and helped monitor military bases and equipment, which do not allow foreigners to visit.

"Fei Ge" has reportedly recruited 12 people in Guangdong and altogether 40 people in more than 20 cities and regions in the past seven years, as he contacted Net users on military online forums.

However, military fans are not the only prey targeted by intelligence agents.

Students are another group of easy targets that can easily fall into the trap due to a lack of education on national security protection in China.

Innocent and reckless

Some 30 similar cases have been investigated by State security departments in over 10 provincial regions since 2012, all of which were found to have connection with overseas intelligence agencies.

An anonymous insider told the Global Times that information tip-off cases in school campus are on the rise in recent years. "Even minors were involved."

In 2011, a 16-year-old high school student surnamed Zhang violated the law by giving away government documents to overseas intelligence agencies and helping send classified materials between spies.

Zhang has previously lied online about being a military school graduate and he was then offered $400 in exchange for restricted documents.

When the made-up materials of military exercise could not be accepted by the spies, Zhang again claimed that he worked with the education bureau and stole official documents from his school.

The student also helped pass on classified documents from some officials who had been subverted by overseas intelligent agencies.

A total of 200,000 yuan had been offered to Zhang by the time he was arrested.

In other cases, students from specific majors such as aerospace and aviation can also be incited by spies.

Those students will be paid to do researches on internal academic journals, photographs on shipyards and vessels.

"It is abominable for overseas espionage to use innocent youth to pass on intelligence, which is blatantly against the law," said a State security officer who refused to be named.

The officer told the Global Times that students involved in those cases often have limited access to classified information and most of them would not realize the hazards of what they had done even when they were called in by the police.

Usually, students who plead guilty and repent would be given a warning and educated.

Their connections with overseas espionage would be called off immediately, instead attempting to turn them as double agents.

Official spies

In comparison with those students stealing or collecting limited information, intelligence agencies are also keen to put potential at key posts for more useful intelligence.