Chinese Huawei ‘Spies’ Charged — FBI is Mad as Hell

The Chinese government sent two spies to extract information about the U.S. case against Huawei. But they didn’t expect their contact to be a double agent.

FBI director Christopher Wray (pictured) ain’t happy, calling it “a 365-day-a-year problem.” China, Russia and other state threats continue to exert “malign foreign influence,” he says.

Interesting timing, with the announcement right after Xi Jinping changed the constitution to stay in power indefinitely. In today’s SB Blogwatch, we won’t share our hunny with heffalumps or woozles.

Your humble blogwatcher curated these bloggy bits for your entertainment. Not to mention: The King’s cypher.

China Pwned by U.S.

What’s the craic? Sadie Gurman, Dustin Volz, Aruna Viswanatha and James T. Areddy report—“U.S. Says Chinese Tried to Obstruct Huawei Prosecution”:

Weaponized by the Chinese government
Two Chinese intelligence officers tried to bribe a U.S. law-enforcement official to obtain what they believed was inside information about the U.S. criminal case against Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei … prosecutors alleged. … Guochun He and Zheng Wang, were charged in a federal criminal complaint. … The two are described in the complaint as Chinese intelligence officers who are conducting foreign intelligence operations against the U.S. on behalf of the Chinese government.

According to the U.S. complaint [Guochun and Zheng] allegedly began attempting in early 2017 to cultivate a relationship with a U.S. law-enforcement official who “subsequently began working as a double agent for the U.S. government.” … The official received [$61,000] for sharing purportedly confidential information about the government’s case against Huawei … including details about witnesses, potential new charges and trial evidence, the complaint said.

Federal law-enforcement officials for years have increasingly warned of national-security threats posed by China, including human and cyber-enabled espionage, the theft of corporate intellectual property, and efforts to influence U.S. policy-making through overt and covert means. … Western intelligence officials have for many years accused Huawei of being a particularly notable threat that could be weaponized by the Chinese government. … Huawei and China have both repeatedly denied … allegations of wrongdoing.

Such as? Stefania Palma—“Washington takes aim at Beijing’s ‘violation of international laws’”:

Did not immediately respond
The DoJ in 2020 accused [Huawei] of seeking to misappropriate intellectual property from US technology companies. Huawei has pleaded not guilty to charges of racketeering and stealing trade secrets. Meng Wanzhou, Huawei’s chief financial officer, had also been charged in 2019 with bank and wire fraud.

The case comes as tensions have continued to rise between Washington and Beijing over a host of issues, including technology. The administration of Joe Biden recently sent China’s chips industry reeling by implementing severe export controls that will curb its access to advanced computer chips.

The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Apparently, the fact we’re talking about Huawei is some sort of secret. Thomas Claburn gives us chapter and verse—“Uncle Sam says these Chinese nationals are Beijing agents”:

1,300 percent increase
United States v. Dong He, et al. in the Eastern District of New York, is a complaint and arrest warrant [PDF] against Dong He (aka Guochun He and Jacky He), and Zheng Wang (aka Zen Wang), on two counts of money laundering. … At a Justice Department press conference … Assistant US Attorney Alexander Solomon declined to confirm that the unnamed company … was Huawei.

FBI Director Christopher Wray said … ”Each of these cases lays bare the Chinese government’s flagrant violation of international laws as they work to project their authoritarian view around the world, including within our own borders. … We found the Chinese government threatening established democratic norms and the rule of law as they work to undermine US economic security and fundamental human rights, including those of Americans. … We also see a coordinated effort across the Chinese government to lie, cheat and steal their way into unfairly dominating entire technology sectors, putting competing US companies out of business.

“When I last looked, we were opening a new China counterintelligence investigation about every 12 hours. And it’s about a 1,300 percent increase from several years ago. … Malign foreign influence—whether it’s from the Chinese government, the Russian government, or other governments—is … a 365-day-a-year problem.”

Sounds huge. schwit1 alleges an allegation:

Huawei isn’t a real company. Huawei is a foreign intelligence agency masquerading as a business, and they are under no pressure to ever make money. Their only job is to get a footprint that they can use as leverage and for intelligence. Crypto AG was similar.

Which Chinese tech corp is next? ByteDance, thinks u/ProjectGnova:

So Huawei being a threat to US national security was not hot air. I think this probably speaks volumes into TikTok as well. IIRC, the same agencies behind ringing the alarm bell over Huawei also raised the same bells over TikTok.

Perps doing time soon? stevespang isn’t hopeful of justice:

Just wait, same result as before: US arrests several real PRC spies, then PRC kidnaps innocent but “high level” US citizens doing business in China, puts them in solitary confinement. You won’t see it in the news, but months later all are swapped out and PRC gets away with their crimes. Wash, rinse, and repeat.

Too cynical? @gratefulvoice doesn’t think so:

That’s how they roll. The Chinese are good at the game.

But VoiceOfTruth is waiting for the next McCarthy:

For years America parroted the “Yellow Peril” and “Reds under the bed” nonsense. I am just waiting for the rejuvenation of the House Un-American Activities Committee and all the **** that came with that. “Have you now or ever been Chinese?”, “Have you ever eaten at a Chinese restaurant?” will be questions on a visa form soon.

Meanwhile, none of this surprises Retired Chemist—except this one tiny detail:

The only thing about this that surprises me is that they were blatant and clumsy enough to get caught.

And Finally:

No, not that sort of cypher

Previously in And Finally


You have been reading SB Blogwatch by Richi Jennings. Richi curates the best bloggy bits, finest forums, and weirdest websites … so you don’t have to. Hate mail may be directed to @RiCHi or [email protected]. Ask your doctor before reading. Your mileage may vary. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Do not stare into laser with remaining eye. E&OE. 30.

Image sauce: DonkeyHotey (cc:by; leveled and cropped)

Richi Jennings

Richi Jennings is a foolish independent industry analyst, editor, and content strategist. A former developer and marketer, he’s also written or edited for Computerworld, Microsoft, Cisco, Micro Focus, HashiCorp, Ferris Research, Osterman Research, Orthogonal Thinking, Native Trust, Elgan Media, Petri, Cyren, Agari, Webroot, HP, HPE, NetApp on Forbes and CIO.com. Bizarrely, his ridiculous work has even won awards from the American Society of Business Publication Editors, ABM/Jesse H. Neal, and B2B Magazine.

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