U.S. seizes 13 domains tied to alleged Chinese spy recruitment operation
Federal agents seized 13 domains used to lure cleared Americans into sharing sensitive information. Officials said the scheme mixed job ads, AI faces and payment platforms.
Federal authorities seized 13 internet domains that officials say were used by fake consulting firms to target current and former U.S. government and military employees with access to classified or sensitive information. The tactic relied less on classic spycraft than on the everyday machinery of modern work: professional networking, online job listings and the promise of easy money. Officials said the campaign was designed to turn trust, career insecurity and digital convenience into intelligence collection.
The U.S. Department of Justice said the domains were used to reach U.S. persons, including current and former security clearance holders. Jeanine Ferris Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, said the seizures sent a clear message that attempts to exploit Americans with access to the nation’s most sensitive information would be exposed and dismantled. Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg said foreign actors can use promises of easy money to lure Americans into revealing information they are duty-bound to protect.
Roman Rozhavsky, an FBI assistant director, said the fake consulting domains were used to trick, recruit or coerce current and former security clearance holders. The FBI said the sites used fraudulent or stolen identities and AI-generated photographs to look legitimate, while also relying on AI-generated content, professional networking sites and online payment platforms. The bureau said foreign intelligence services may use fake profiles, flattering outreach, lucrative job offers, scarcity and seemingly harmless requests for reports before pressing for sensitive details.
The seizure came as the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, which includes the United States, Britain, Australia, Canada and New Zealand, warned that China’s military intelligence services are using Western professional networking sites and online job platforms to target people with access to sensitive government, military and defense-related information. The FBI has said China and other foreign governments use professional networking and social media sites to reach people with U.S. government security clearances. The bureau also says China oversees hundreds of talent plans and recruits scientists, researchers, professors and students to bring knowledge back to China.
The pattern has surfaced before. Reuters reported in March 2025 on a similar recruitment network that tried to enlist recently laid-off federal workers, a vulnerable pool because job loss can create financial pressure and a sense of isolation. The FBI’s China-threat material points to a case involving former CIA officer Kevin Mallory, who was recruited through a fake profile on a professional networking site. A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington rejected the allegation and called it malicious slander, underscoring how counterintelligence warnings continue to collide with diplomatic denial.
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