China using LinkedIn for espionage by creating fake accounts

Almost every US social media site is banned in China but
LinkedIn is the only social media site that was not banned in China. It is
speculated that China is using the LinkedIn platform to hire spies. Intelligence
agencies from countries such as Britain, France and the US have warned about
covert Chinese activities and hiring through LinkedIn.

A report from New York times revealed that Chinese agents often
make offers through LinkedIn, to bring the prospective recruit to China,
sometimes under the mask of a corporate recruiting firm, the report revealed.

The New York times report also stated that some LinkedIn
accounts vanished mysteriously after it was found to be a covert account maintained
by Chinese.

The report also quoted William Evanina, director of the US National
Counterintelligence saying that instead of directly sending a spy to America,
China nowadays is recruiting just by a friend request through fake profiles in
LinkedIn.

Almost all social media sites in recent years have given space
to fake accounts because of its inability to detect these accounts. The New
York times report said that LinkedIn is acting as an “ideal” platform for
espionage recruitment.

The US newspaper pointed out that “people who have just left the government are especially vulnerable
because they are often looking for new employment”. These words are not
coming from US officials alone, the newspaper said that French intelligence
agencies had informed its government about Chinese agents using LinkedIn to link
with 4,000 French individuals.