BEIJING: The Ministry of State Security warned on Sunday against the illegal collection of sensitive data from classified sites using wind measurement towers and related facilities.
On its WeChat account, the ministry said that in recent years, certain companies with backgrounds linked to foreign espionage and intelligence agencies have covertly infiltrated the vicinity of classified sites in China under the guise of constructing wind measurement towers, using them to illegally collect sensitive data and then transmitting the information abroad.
Wind measurement towers are often equipped with monitoring devices such as anemometers, wind vanes, thermometers and barometers that are used to monitor the atmosphere and make meteorological observations.
In one case, residents of a coastal city reported to national security agencies that a company had illicitly erected a wind measurement tower near a classified facility. After a prompt technical inspection, investigators found that in addition to collecting meteorological data, the tower’s equipment also had the capability to analyze and transmit related data. They concluded that if the data was leaked abroad, it could pose risks to national security.
In another case, following a report from workers at a research base, national security officers inspected a wind measurement tower near the base, revealing that the tower had not been legally registered, had complex data transmission routes and exhibited clear security risks. The tower was dismantled in accordance with the law. –The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item
