Chinese spies target British business: MI5

British businessmen working in China were warned that Chinese spies could try to hack into their computers or blackmail them over sexual relationships, the New York Times reported, citing unnamed sources. The British security service, MI5, distributed a 14-page document to hundreds of British banks one year ago, warning executives that officers from the People’s Liberation Army and the Ministry of Public Security had given gifts to British business men and women at trade fairs and conferences that contained Trojan viruses, allowing Chinese spies to access their computers remotely. MI5 believes that China’s computer hacking campaign has targeted British energy, communications, manufacturing and defense companies as well as international law firms. “Chinese intelligence services have also been known to exploit vulnerabilities such as sexual relationships and illegal activities to pressurize individuals to cooperate with them,” the report warned.