Non-DoD civilians may face sanctions. A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. The U.S. also needs to start getting a handle on the vast quantity of Americans personal information that is all too readily available to make sure that it cannot be exploited by spies. To date these authorities have been deployed against individuals and companies from Russia and Iran in response to cyberattacks, but have yet to be deployed against Chinese entities engaged in or benefiting from economic espionage or other cyberattacks against the U.S. Edward Fishman. 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. The FITF is also working with international partners to exchange intelligence and strategies for combating what is a shared threat. The IC remains focused on the missions of cyber intelligence . State-owned enterprises are also engaged in espionage. When divided into the aforementioned categories (Espionage, Economic Espionage, ITAR, EAR, Covert Action) the 274 espionage cases show the percentages of operations as follows (Figure 1.). The FBI is the lead agency for exposing, preventing, and investigating intelligence activities in the U.S. Because much of todays spying is accomplished by data theft from computer networks, espionage is quickly becoming cyber-based. Preventing terrorist attacks remains the FBIs top priority. In closing, I would like to offer two general thoughts. 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. Al Qaeda maintains its desire for large-scale, spectacular attacks. But government tools must also be an important part of the U.S. government response. Avoiding polygraph Foreign Intelligence Threats - Traditional Activity Traditional activity Forgoing intelligence entities operating out of: Embassies Consulates Universities Trade missions Insider Spies (Insider Threat) Foreign Intelligence Threats Non-Traditional Activity Foreign government-sponsored commercial enterprises International trafficking organizations Detailed analysis of these cases provides ample evidence that China is conducting espionage, as well who is responsible, their information objectives, gaps in their knowledge, and operational tradecraft techniques. Activities, behaviors, or circumstances that "may be indicative" of potential espionage activities by an individual who may have volunteered or Ben recruited by a foreign entity as a writing espionage agent. In addition, whether located at home or abroad, many cyber actors are obfuscating their identities and obscuring their activity by using combinations of leased and compromised infrastructure in domestic and foreign jurisdictions. 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. A number of cyber security firms reported a drop in suspected China-linked attacks in the year following the agreement, and in late 2016 the CEO of the CrowdStrike cybersecurity firm called the change in Chinas behavior the biggest success weve had in this arena in 30 years. However, Justice Department indictments and U.S. government reports indicate that there has been a substantial uptick in Chinese hacking over the past year, and so it remains unclear how much the agreement has or will affect Chinese behavior over the long-term. In a major coup, this past October Justice for the first time managed to extradite a suspected Chinese spy from a third country to the U.S. to face trial for his involvement in stealing U.S. trade secrets. Aimed at bolstering the government's arguments, the memo highlights in detail how the FBI identifies the activities of foreigners that would potentially be considered espionage. The Department of Justice has in recent years indicted numerous Chinese spies, hackers, and companies for their involvement in stealing U.S. IP. Espionage makes it a crime to deal with information on behalf of, or to communicate to, a foreign principal (such as a foreign government or a person acting on their behalf). We have also been confronting a surge in terrorist propaganda and training available via the Internet and social media. 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. Cyber threats are not only increasing in size and scope, but are also becoming increasingly difficult and resource-intensive to investigate. 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. Foreign travel of short duration 20 Espionage falls All Rights Reserved. Foreign Intelligence Agency-What do they want? Echoing other terrorist groups, ISIS has advocated for lone offender attacks in Western countries. It is seen by many who enter messaging apps and participate in social networks. The PLA was involved in 61 such cases. Our adversary seeks to expand its U.S. companies continue to need to make major investments in hardening their defenses against cyber threats and to train employees to be vigilant against Chinese espionage. Foreign states are generally equipped to conduct the most damaging cyber espionage and computer network attacks. The second type of Chinese espionage targeting U.S. colleges and universities has been espionage aimed at intimidating Chinese students and professors critical of Chinese policies, and to a lesser extent American students and academics. 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. I appreciate your continued support and look forward to answering any questions you might have. These techniques were used approximately one-third of the time. Espionage. Crime and terrorist activity are an ever- present threat to our Nation. 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. Senior administration officials made clear prior to President Trumps recent trade policy-focused meeting with Chinese President Xi that reductions in IP theft are a major administration priority, and reductions in Chinese IP theft should be a be a major U.S. demand in the U.S.-China trade negotiations that will occur over the next three months. Recent ISIS videos and propaganda have specifically advocated for attacks against soldiers, law enforcement, and intelligence community personnel. While the U.S. government and defense contractors must continue to harden their defenses against Chinese espionage and the U.S. government must work aggressively to root out, expel, and prosecute Chinese spies, the framework for addressing this kind of espionage is well developed. U.S. intelligence, security, and law enforcement apparatus is just starting, 20 years later, to catch on. Economic Espionage and Trade Secret Theft . The FBIs affidavit describes luring Xu to Belgium to illegally purchase General Electric commercial aviation technology. Many foreign terrorist organizations use various digital communication platforms to reach individuals they believe may be susceptible and sympathetic to violent terrorist messages. Figure 3: Distribution of Chinese Espionage Cases in the United States. The goal of these foreign influence operations directed against the United States is to spread disinformation, sow discord, push foreign nations policy agendas, and ultimately undermine confidence in our democratic institutions and values. There is a near equal distribution of espionage activities between the four major organizational clusters. China needs to understand that if it tries to steal U.S. technology, it will not be able to benefit from it. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms. Nicholas Eftimiades is a lecturer at Penn State University, Homeland Security Program. Hacking back proposals would need to be carefully tailored to mitigate potential unintended consequences and to protect innocent parties, and the risks need to be carefully evaluated. Fortunately, efforts here in Congress, including by Chairman Grassley and other members of this Committee, have drawn public attention to this issue, and Assistant Attorney General Demers and the Department of Justice have significantly expanded FARA enforcement. A lock () or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. The foreign intelligence threat to the United States is expanding, becoming more complex and less predictable. This initiative will also work to use tools like the Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA) to require better disclosure of Chinese activities across the United States. The government must also provide a description of the information sought and the places or facilities that will be searched. II. The wide variance in sophistication of espionage tradecraft implies the idea of Islands of Excellence (see Figure 6) meaning China employs espionage tradecraft with varying degrees of sophistication and effectiveness. The scale and scope of China-nexus targeted intrusion activity is unlikely to contract in 2023, as cyber espionage remains a critical instrument to support the CCP's strategic and economic. In addition, there has been a debate in the community about the extent to which the apparent reduction in attacks simply represented Chinese efforts to restructure how China engages in cyber operations, rather than a genuine change in Chinese intentions. 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. 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 . Outright theft of U.S. and western intellectual property (IP) is a key piece of Chinas strategy, but it is only a piece. Unauthorized access to information systems. We're looking at $200 billion to. Figure 4: Adapted from Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Spies might seem like a throwback to earlier days of world wars and cold wars, but they are more common than everand they are targeting our nations most valuable secrets. He recently retired from a 34 year government career that included employment in the CIA, Department of State, and Defense Intelligence Agency. But the underlying statute itself still arguably fails to cover a range of information collection and influence activities that China and other nations carry out in the United States. Foreign power activity or knowledge which is inconsistent with the expected norm that suggests that foreign powers have knowledge of U.S. National Security. China's espionage operations on the United States have been growing stronger for years. As the committee is well aware, the frequency and severity of malicious cyber activity on our nations private sector and government networks have increased dramatically in the past decade when measured by the amount of corporate data stolen or deleted, the volume of personally identifiable information compromised, or the remediation costs incurred by U.S. victims. Illegal downloads. DOJ has also faced repeated setbacks in its prosecution in the Eastern District of Virginia of Bijan Rafiekian, former business partner of Trumps National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, accused of acting as an illegal agent of the Turkish government in an effort to obtain the extradition of a Turkish dissident. China has also tried to hack think tanks to understand policy and think tank engagement with government officials. Evoke or draw out (a response, answer, or fact) from someone in reaction to ones own actions or questions. This is a significant transformation from the terrorist threat our nation faced a decade ago. That type of understanding takes evidence based off detailed analysis of a sufficient body of data. Foreign intelligence Entities seldom use elicitation to extract information from people who have access to classified or sensitive information. Take time to use secure communications equipment The CCPs Organization Department makes all senior personnel appointments within these business organizations. Never answer questions you feel uncomfortable APT41 has been active since as early as 2012. (1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. The Trump administration has also begun to deploy targeted trade measures against Chinese beneficiaries of IP theft. 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. 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. The Company Man: Protecting Americas Secrets, Economic Espionage: Protecting America's Trade Secrets, The Insider Threat: An Introduction to Detecting and Deterring and Insider Spy, Intellectual Property Protection: Safeguard Your Company's Trade Secrets, Proprietary Information, and Research, Safety and Security for the Business Professional Traveling Abroad, Safety and Security for U.S. Students Traveling Abroad, Higher Education and National Security: The Targeting of Sensitive, Proprietary, and Classified Information on Campuses of Higher Education, Best Practices in Supply Chain Risk Management for the U.S. Government, Two U.S. Citizens Arrested for Illegally Exporting Technology to Russia, Civil Forfeiture Complaint Filed Against Six Luxury Real Estate Properties Involved in Sanctions Evasion and Money Laundering, Russian National Charged with Supplying U.S. Technology to the Russian and North Korean Governments, Corrected: Four Florida Men Arrested in Plot to Kill Haitian President, Grand Jury Returns Indictment Against 11, U.S. Citizen Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Conspiring to Provide Electronic Equipment and Technology to the Government of Iran, Associate of Sanctioned Oligarch Indicted for Sanctions Evasion and Money Laundering, Chinese National Sentenced to Eight Years in Prison for Acting Within the U.S. as an Unregistered Agent of the Peoples Republic of China, Former Special Agent in Charge of the FBI New York Counterintelligence Division Charged with Violating U.S. Sanctions on Russia, FBI.gov is an official site of the U.S. Department of Justice, Protect the secrets of the U.S. Intelligence Community, Protect the nations critical assets, like our advanced technologies and sensitive information in the defense, intelligence, economic, financial, public health, and science and technology sectors, Keep weapons of mass destruction from falling into the wrong hands. The Economic Espionage Act (EEA)1996 Public Law 104-294, 110 Stat. Former National Security Agency Director Keith Alexander has called Chinas IP theft greatest transfer of wealth in history. And as the 2018 NCSC report noted, the threat is growing due to expanded cloud-based computer networks and the internet of things (the home appliances, cars, and other things that will be connected to the internet)--which, according to the NCSC will create an incalculably larger exploitation space for cyber threat actors., Casual discussions of Chinese economic espionage often focus on high-end cyber intrusions into U.S. corporate networks. Chinas defense industry is working to develop a comparable engine. Nonchalantly ask questions The FITF is uniquely positioned to combat this threat. 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. An adversary conducts activities with precision that indicates prior knowledge. The category of traditional espionage can be seen at 18 percent; but is considerably lower when Taiwan is removed as a PRC intelligence target. China is stepping up anti-espionage activities amid worsening ties with the United States and a renewed focus on national security ahead of a key Communist Party anniversary later this year. https://www.law.com/newyorklawjournal/2022/12/07/setbacks-prosecuting-trump-allies-highlight-challenges-in-foreign-influence-cases/. 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 U.S. government has steadily increased its response to the threat of Chinas unconventional espionage. To most individual citizens, cyber espionage may not seem to influence their lives very much, but its costs on a nation-state are significant. In October, the U.S. passed sweeping new export controls on China. Responding to Chinas unconventional espionage threat will require a whole-of-society approach, not just a whole-of-government approach. Failure to report may result in disciplinary action. ), Next Generation National Security Fellows, The Shawn Brimley Next Generation National Security Leaders Fellowship, Joseph S. Nye, Jr. National Security Internship and Mentoring Program, 2022 CNAS National Security Conference: Security in the Balance, Sanctions by the Numbers: SDN, CMIC, and Entity List Designations on China, Since Russia Invaded Ukraine, Allies Levied More Than 11,000 Sanctions on Russia, Calling Check: Technology Competition with China. The FBI uses all lawful investigative techniques and methods to combat these terrorist threats to the United States. WASHINGTON - Russian government hackers breached the Treasury and Commerce departments, along with other U.S. government agencies, as part of a global espionage campaign that stretches back months . Expressing an obligation to engage in violence The MSS was formed in June 1983 by combining the espionage, counterintelligence, and security functions of the Ministry of Public Security and the Investigations Department of the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee. Similarly, SOEs are aggressive in conducting or supporting espionage (72 acts total), stealing primarily advanced military technology. Currently there are open investigations with a foreign influence nexus spanning FBI field offices across the country. Browsing international terrorist websites, Everyone is required to report all FIE threats 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. License our industry-leading legal content to extend your thought leadership and build your brand. The attack was attributed to Russian hackers and caused an estimated $10 billion in damages. 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. Examples of PEI include, Unexplained affluence, concealing foreign travel, unusual work hours, avoiding polygraph This has allowed U.S. companies such as Micron Technologies to sue Chinese companies in federal court for the Chinese companies theft of U.S. IP. Persons subject to the UCMJ may be subject to punitive action This represents a new and different threat to Americas long-term leadership and must be addressed forcefully. Chairman Grassley, Ranking Member Feinstein, and Honorable Members of the Committee, it is a pleasure to be invited to speak to you today about one of the most important trade and national security issues that the U.S. confronts today: Chinas unconventional espionage against the United States. 2023 Diplomat Media Inc. All Rights Reserved. The second major U.S. government response has been increasingly aggressive Justice Department efforts to prosecute Chinese spies. Practice good Operations security westminster cathedral choir school mumsnet; junior deacon duties opening lodge; . One might expect poor tradecraft from nonprofessional intelligence entities such as individuals, companies, and SOEs. The most persistent threats to the nation and to U.S. interests abroad are homegrown violent extremists (HVEs), domestic violent extremists, and foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs). 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. In these cases no (23 cases) or minimal tradecraft (21 cases) was employed. It is a pleasure to be joined by two distinguished co-panelists who will also speak about the threat and I will focus on the aspects of the threat that I am most familiar with: how China uses unconventional, economic espionage as a component part of a comprehensive strategy to promote Chinas own high-tech industries. Beijing has stated its intention to advance industry, technology, and military capabilities to become a world leader by 2025. 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. Those include going after terrorists and spies, including in cyberspace, countering foreign malign influence, enforcing our export controls and sanctions laws, and reviewing foreign investments in U.S. companies. As Australias military ties with the U.S. deepen, the Top End becomes even more vital to Australian security. 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. While India would like the current phase of stability at the LoC to continue, it has little incentive to try to make a grand gesture toward peace with Pakistan. But China is by far the most active practitioner of economic espionage today. As part of a nationwide campaign to raise awareness of the growing economic espionage threat, the FBI has released a short video, "The Company Man: Protecting Americas Secrets." A fine of not more than $5,000,000, Personnel who fail to report CI activities of concern as outlined in Enclosure 4 of DoD Directive 5240.06 are subject to appropriate disciplinary action under regulations, Under DoDD 5240.06 Reportable Foreign Intelligence Contacts, Activities, Indicators and Behavior; which of the following is reportable, Contact with known or suspected foreign intelligence Asia, Pacific Economic Espionage Act of 1996. SOE espionage activities show a wide variance in tradecraft. The threats posed by foreign fighters, including those recruited from the U.S., are very dynamic. In addition to its investigative work, the FBI works to raise public awareness and inform industry of the threats they face, through outreach activities. Similarly, much of the responsibility for responding to Chinese efforts to infiltrate U.S. academic institutions will fall on those institutions themselves. United States v. Franklin, Rosen, and Weissman was an early 21st century court case from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.The government prosecuted one Department of Defense employee (Franklin) and two lobbyists (Rosen & Weissman) for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) for allegedly disclosing national defense information to persons 'not . 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. By Barry Black and Jonathan Robert Nelson, Shearman and Hogan Lovells Call Off Merger Talks, Early Reports: 2023 Am Law 200 Financials, Beyond Excess Capacity, Pooled Services and Automation Expedite Staff Layoffs, Dozens of Law Firms Grew Their Equity Partner Tier, Even as Profits and Demand Plummeted. Recognizing innovation in the legal technology sector for working on precedent-setting, game-changing projects and initiatives. Providing financial support to terrorist organization The resources and capabilities of such actors vary. In many respects, the goals of this kind of espionage are similar to economic espionageto capture technological advances that could prove valuable to Chinese firms and potentially to the Chinese military. It is absolutely essential to stop Chinese unconventional espionage. When expanded it provides a list of search options that will switch the search inputs to match the current selection. CI-21 proposes significant changes in the way the United States government approaches, and organizes itself to meet, the threat of foreign espionage and intelligence gathering. Dynamically explore and compare data on law firms, companies, individual lawyers, and industry trends. 8. 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 . This week Emily Kilcrease, director of the Energy, Economics, and Security program at CNAS, joins The Asia Chessboard podcast from CSIS for a wide ranging discussion on the i By Contact with international terrorist Copying files, unexplained absences, terminating employment, Counterintelligence Awareness & Reporting Cou, CI Awareness and Reporting Briefing Assessment, Counterintelligence Awareness and Reporting f, Level I Antiterrorism Awareness (JS-US007), J3OP-US261-HB Emergency Preparedness Response, TEMA 28: Bacterias de interes biotecnologic. The French engaged in economic espionage throughout the 1980s. Media is waiting where a sensitive DoD program will be tested. The IT threat to the U.S. has expanded from sophisticated, externally directed FTO plots to include individual attacks carried out by HVEs who are inspired by designated terrorist organizations. In late October, the U.S. Commerce Department put a Chinese semiconductor firm, Fujian Jinhua Integrated Circuit Company, on its entity list, which prohibits U.S. companies from selling Fujian Jinhua technology and products. U.S. Embassy The group has been observed targeting healthcare, telecom, technology, and video game industries in 14 countries. Foreign influence operationswhich may include covert actions by foreign governments to influence U.S. policy decisions, political sentiment or public discourseare not a new problem. U.S. policymakers however, have rightly sought to aggressively deter and punish Chinese espionage intended to steal trade secrets and other IP from the U.S. private sector that is then transferred to Chinese companies for commercial advantage, and to crack down on other forms of unconventional espionage that threaten Americas technological, economic, and military edge. Both Barrack and Rafiekian were charged under 951 of the U.S. Criminal Code, which has roots in the Espionage Act of 1917, and broadly prohibits agents of foreign governments from acting in the United States without first notifying the Attorney General. Disgruntled 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. The minimal application of tradecraft is expected, as these cases typically do not involve professional intelligence operatives (either case officers or agents). procuring supplies for terrorist organizations 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. Taking classified material home The recent attacks in Texas and California underscore the continued threat posed by domestic violent extremists and perpetrators of hate crimes. China is drawing lessons from Russias invasion of Ukraine. Do not prove for information - nonchalantly ask questions about them.