Beijing — China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) issued a warning on Wednesday about foreign spies attempting to entice Chinese students into espionage using “handsome men” or “beautiful women” as bait. The MSS claims these spies use various tactics, including online dating and job advertisements, to target students with access to sensitive information.
The agency cautioned that foreign spies are employing elaborate disguises, sometimes changing their gender, to deceive young students and extract confidential data. The MSS emphasized the need for a unified national defense against such threats, calling on citizens to form a “1.4 billion lines of defense.”
While the MSS did not specify which countries are involved, it alleged that spies might pose as university scholars or consultants to exploit financially vulnerable students. This warning follows earlier claims, such as accusing Britain’s MI6 of recruiting government employees to spy for the UK.
Under President Xi Jinping, China has intensified its warnings about foreign attempts to undermine its progress, with recent disclosures shedding light on individual espionage cases.
