Last week, the Five Eyes intelligence alliance -- composed of the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and New Zealand -- issued a rare warning that Chinese military intelligence services were using LinkedIn and other job platforms to pry secret information.
In a statement on Wednesday, the US Department of Justice announced the seizure of domain names allegedly used by sham consulting sites to target Americans with access to classified information.
"Today's seizures send a clear message that any attempts to exploit Americans trusted with access to our nation's most sensitive information will be exposed and dismantled," said US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro.
Roman Rozhavsky, assistant director of the FBI's Counterintelligence and Espionage Division, said the seizures illustrate "the lengths the Chinese government's intelligence services will go to as they try to use AI-generated content to trick, recruit, or coerce current and former US security clearance holders into sharing sensitive information."
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg warned Americans they should treat any offers of quick income for vague consulting "with extreme caution and remain vigilant for warning signs of malicious targeting."
The unnamed conspirators behind the websites "have denied any involvement by any foreign government," according to the Justice Department statement.
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