MPs demand arrest of Brits who sold secrets to Chinese LinkedIn spy

Jail the Chinese LinkedIn spy’s gullible helpers: MPs demand ‘the full force of the law’ used against any Brits who sold secrets to ‘Robin Zhang’ after he targeted thousands on social media site from a desk in Beijing

• The Beijing-based secret agent is mainly operating under the alias Robin Zhang 

Any Brits found to have sold secrets to a Chinese spy who targeted gullible officials on an industrial scale using LinkedIn should face ‘the full force of the law’, a senior MP said today.

A Communist operative using a string of alias is believed to have wooed thousands of civil servants, scientists and academics using the business-orientated social media site, all while sat at a desk in Beijing.

The spy, whose main alias was Robin Zhang, is said to have used a raft of fake names and created sham companies to entice civil servants, scientists and even security officials into handing over classified Government information.

They were lured with offers of thousands of pounds in cash, lucrative private sector jobs and trips to conferences, with some falling for it so heavily they sent him CVs.

All were targeted in the hope they would hand over sensitive government or commercially sensitive information, an investigation by The Times found.

Tory MP Alicia Kearns, who chairs the Foreign Affairs Committee, said those targeted had to take ‘personal responsibility’, telling Times Radio: ‘It is your job to make sure that you are not selling secrets, you are not giving away information, you’re not being flattered into giving speeches… 

‘And people should know if you are a official in the UK and you have access to secret information and we find out that you have chosen to sell it … you will face the full force of the law.’

Meanwhile other MPs urged the Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly, to cancel a reported trip to Beijing this week.

A Communist operative using a string of alias is believed to have wooed thousands of civil servants, scientists and academics using the business-orientated social media site, all while sat at a desk in Beijing. 

Tory MP Alicia Kearns, who chairs the Foreign Affairs Committee, said those targeted had to take ‘personal responsibility’, telling Times Radio: ‘It is your job to make sure that you are not selling secrets, you are not giving away information, you’re not being flattered into giving speeches.’

The man is thought to have links with the Chinese Ministry of State Security’s headquarters. Pictured: China’s President Xi Jinping

Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith said: ‘How can the UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Affairs continue to think he has to go to China to ‘KowTow’ to China while they steal our secrets and commit genocide? 

‘Our policy towards China is like a front door mat.’

The revelation comes weeks after Parliament’s intelligence watchdog warned that Chinese spies are ‘prolifically and aggressively’ targeting the UK.

The Intelligence and Security Committee said that Beijing was managing to penetrate ‘every sector of the economy’ before criticising the Government’s response to the threat by questioning the trade-off between economic interests and security concerns. 

The 207-page report, published in July added that the UK is of ‘significant interest to China when it comes to espionage and interference’, placing the country ‘just below China’s top priority targets’. 

It said: ‘China’s state intelligence apparatus – almost certainly the largest in the world with hundreds of thousands of civil intelligence officers…. targets the UK and its interests prolifically and aggressively, and presents a challenge for our Agencies to cover.’ 

The spy is thought to be one of the most prolific spies working in the UK in years, Western security officials have said.

The sole Beijing operative is said to have used a raft of fake names and created sham companies to target civil servants, scientists, security officials, academics and think tank staff.

Other pseudonyms used included names such as Eric Chen Yixi, Robin Cao, Lincoln Lam, John Lee and Eric Kim. The profiles, which either used stock images or pictures of innocent people, claimed to work in Shanghai’s security sector.

The man, whose undercover work is said to have been at play for at least five years, is thought to be working from a desk in China’s capital, believed to be linked with the Chinese Ministry of State Security’s headquarters. 

Some sent CVs, while one said the user had been ‘unprofessional and pushy’ before offering money for information on the UK’s relationship with China. 

The newspaper revealed the spy made up security companies and websites so he looked more credible when he approached his targets. He even pretended to attend a London university. 

On one occasion man, whose real identity cannot be published as it would put spies in Western countries at risk, offered to pay £8,000 to a recruitment consultant every time they gave details of candidates who worked in intelligence services.

Former colonel Philip Ingram, who specialised in cyber intelligence and the use of chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear weapons, said he had a request from someone going under the name ‘Robin’ five years ago.

After accepting, he was quickly asked to write a report on how British counterterrorism works and asked for information that ‘isn’t easily accessible to anyone’. His suspicions were raised after finding no details about the company ‘Robin’ allegedly worked.

Security minister Tom Tugendhat warned that it was not just civil servants who should be aware, but also businesses, researchers and academics 

‘I’m certain there’s an entire department at MSS that is using these tactics,’ he told the Times. The colonel ended communication after he was asked to go to China. 

Security minister Tom Tugendhat told the paper: ‘It’s not just government employees who need to exercise caution, it’s businesses with commercially sensitive information, as well as researchers and academics.’

He warned that other British civilians using LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional networking site with more than 930 million users, should be aware. 

A spokeswoman for LinkedIn told MailOnline: ‘Creating a fake account is a clear violation of our terms of service. 

‘Our Threat Prevention & Defense team actively seeks out signs of state-sponsored activity and removes fake accounts using information we uncover and intelligence from a variety of sources, including government agencies. 

‘Our Transparency Report details the actions that we take to keep LinkedIn a safe place where real people can connect with professionals they know and trust.’

MailOnline has contacted the Home Office. 

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