Edited by Deepali Verma
China detained a foreign national who was the head of an overseas consulting firm for allegedly spying on behalf of the United Kingdom, as per the CNN reports. China’s civilian spy agency, the Ministry of State Security (MSS), voiced in a statement that it suspected an individual surnamed Huang working with Britain’s MI6 while leading a foreign consultancy.
The agency yet has not mentioned Huang’s full name, gender or nationality, nor identified the company they worked at.
Huang is said to have started working with MI6 in 2015 on intelligence matters, with the British agency planning Huang’s travel to China multiple times to gather intelligence and identify potential assets for it, MSS recorded in its statement.
Huang was provided with due training as well as professional spying equipment for facilitating the exchange of intelligence and communications, the MSS added.
It further alleged that Huang gifted Britain with 17 pieces of intelligence, including several “national secrets.”
Over the course of MSS investigation, Huang was permitted consular visits from their home country in accordance with the law, it said.
Moreover, the British Embassy stationed in Beijing sent CNN to the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) for comment on the case. However, the FCDO held back from immediately responding to their request.
For three months, China has embarked on a crackdown concerning international consulting firms, as reported by CNN.
Dring May 2023, the state security authorities informed them that they had raided several offices of Capvision, an advisory network with headquarters located in Shanghai and New York.
The announcement came after Chinese officials shut down the Beijing office of Mintz Group which was a US corporate due diligence firm, and questioned employees at the local branch of top consultancy Bain.
Meanwhile, the measures were undertaken as a part of wider efforts by Beijing to increase oversight of what it says is sensitive information pertaining to national security, as per CNN.
Capvision in October informed that it had successfully conducted a national security inspection under the guidance of the Chinese government and came up with new compliance measures to address concerns.
The MSS, which oversees intelligence and counterintelligence both within China and reportedly overseas, is generally known for maintaining a low profile. However, recently, it has expanded communications with the masses, including launching an account on WeChat, the ubiquitous social networking platform in China, as stated by CNN reports.
The agency via the platform had given an open call to “all members of society” to join its fight against foreign spies, particularly after a counter-espionage law was passed and brought into effect last July. The law has also spooked businesses as they are worried about whether the expanded scope could lead to higher legal risks.
