China Claims Foreign Agencies Using Wind Towers For ‘Spying’

In a vague and bizarre statement, China’s security agency has claimed that foreign ‘spies’ were collecting sensitive data from wind measurement towers across the country and transmitting it overseas.

The claims — reported by Beijing mouthpiece Global Times — came after a Chinese resident complained to authorities about the installation of a wind tower near a ‘sensitive’ facility, China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) said.

The agency said it investigated the tower and found it had the ability to ‘analyse and transmit’ the meteorological data it was collecting. “If the data were leaked to overseas agents, they could pose risks to China’s state security,” the MSS said.

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Wind measurement towers, technically referred to as anemometer towers, typically have sensors, software and measuring devices on them to gather data such as wind speed and direction.

That data is often collected and analysed for purposes like monitoring the environment or determining a site’s potential for wind energy production.

Beijing claims, however, that some foreign companies have “quietly infiltrated areas around China’s important confidential sites under the guise of” building wind towers.

The MSS cited multiple instances of ‘uncovering’ wind towers built around sensitive areas, including one near a scientific research base, in a post on Chinese social media platform WeChat, Global Times said.

It added that it found “hundreds of illegal foreign-related meteorological detection stations” across more than 20 provinces during raids between January and October 2023.

Those towers were “transmitting real-time meteorological data to overseas, posing significant risks to the state security,” the agency claimed.

The MSS post and the Global Times report gave no specific information and did not name the provinces where the alleged towers were uncovered.

But the security agency warned that no “foreign-related meteorological observation stations” are to be built around military areas, “major construction projects” or areas “involving national security”.

China-West lob spying accusations

MSS’ claims come amid escalating tech and trade tensions between China and the West, and a heightened push by the United States to cut off China’s military from advanced technologies.

Officials in the US and Europe have accused Beijing of deploying all sorts of resources for espionage, including by spying through staff working in Western firms, students studying in their universities, tourists at military bases and even surveillance balloons.

Most recently, US lawmakers have called for a probe into Chinese WiFi-router maker TP Link saying Beijing could use the firm’s products to spy on Americans.

Washington and Brussels have already cut off Chinese technologies like telecom equipment from sensitive infrastructure citing national security concerns. The US is also set to ban the use of Chinese tech in connected vehicles over concerns about the mountain of data their sensors and chips collect.

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China, too, has implemented various measures citing ‘national security’ concerns.

Starting this year, it began publishing a ‘national security-themed’ comic to “improve public awareness” about foreign espionage. The MSS claims the manga-style comic is based on “real cases”.

In one of the first editions of the comic, the MSS claimed of a “foreign threat” to China’s rare earth reserves, without giving any specific information.

In February, China also revised its wide-ranging anti-espionage law to include ‘work secrets’ — pieces of information “that are not state secrets but will cause certain adverse effects if leaked”. It did not specify, however, what such information would be.

Beijing has, since last year, also been on a crusade against corruption in key industries, and among military and government officials.

The vast crackdown, that aims to stem any security vulnerabilities, has led to the unexplained disappearances of many officials, including former foreign and defence ministers Qin Gang and Li Shangfu.

Both were eventually removed from their posts without explanation.

China comic strip warning of foreign threat to its rare earth reserves — Chinese security agency’s comic strip warning of foreign threat to its rare earth reserves. Image: Twitter / @Night_Market

Vishakha Saxena

Vishakha Saxena

Vishakha Saxena is the Multimedia and Social Media Editor at Asia Financial. She has worked as a digital journalist since 2013, and is an experienced writer and multimedia producer. As a trader and investor, she is keenly interested in new economy, emerging markets and the intersections of finance and society. You can write to her at [email protected]