The Chinese Ministry of State Security released an article on June 7, warning that overseas espionage agencies are using tactics like “part-time photography” and “compensated research” to lure Chinese individuals into attending military and technology exhibitions abroad to take photos or measurements, which are then provided to foreign intelligence agencies to deduce “core secrets.” This claim has sparked skepticism among military experts.
The article cited instances where foreigners asked Chinese individuals to capture details of aircraft landing gear at airshows, record videos of new radar systems at naval exhibitions, or measure the length and diameter of missile models. The Ministry of State Security stated that through the analysis and integration of publicly displayed photos, data, and details, it could potentially derive what they consider “core secrets.”
Military experts in China have questioned this logic, arguing that the direct link made by the Ministry of State Security between “photographing missile models” and “deducing core secrets” involves a significant logical leap. Weapons expert Tian Ru, speaking to Epoch Times, remarked that missile models exhibited at military expos are typically not true-to-scale replicas of actual equipment but rather stylized for presentation, with real dimensions never being publicly disclosed.
Tian Ru stated, “Even if you hand over the model to foreign spies, they wouldn’t be able to deduce much. If deducing core secrets were as simple as taking a few photos, even aliens wouldn’t be able to do it.”
He further pointed out that if one were to follow the Ministry of State Security’s logic, numerous images of U.S. missiles, F-35 fighter jets, and astronaut space suits are publicly available online, suggesting that China could also deduce core secrets from such images. Tian Ru added, “If it were that easy, China’s rockets would be on par with SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket by now. The Ministry of State Security’s article is of low quality and is simply misleading the public.”
The article by the Ministry of State Security also mentioned that details such as the aircraft skin joint seams, rivet arrangements, and coating reflectance levels at airshows could potentially expose stealth material craftsmanship, while at electronic equipment exhibitions, information like circuit board layouts and chip models could be analyzed to infer electronic warfare system capabilities.
The article emphasized that while individual pieces of information may be limited, collecting information continuously on the same series of radar vehicles, command vehicles, and loading vehicles at different exhibitions during various time periods could piece together an entire weaponry system’s operational formation.
It urged the public to reject high rewards as bait and use professional equipment such as telephoto lenses, 3D scanners, and signal analyzers to photograph equipment and facilities when invited.
Military scholar Li Xiangqun told reporters that China’s weapon models are often not made to scale, with many models being promotional or display items rather than accurate miniatures of real weapons. Li said, “The key structures, materials, guidance systems, engine parameters, and combat performance of these weapons, even when publicly displayed, may not represent real data. It’s like the food models at the entrance of a Japanese restaurant, which only give an idea of the appearance, arrangement, and approximate portion size of dishes but can’t determine freshness or taste of ingredients.”
Li Xiangqun noted that the focus of the Ministry of State Security’s article goes beyond warning the public against accepting overseas missions, encompassing the collection of information in public settings as part of national security narratives. While previously, taking photos at exhibitions was considered a common visit behavior, now, in the ministry’s narrative, photographs, videos, measurement data, and online side jobs could all be interpreted as part of an intelligence chain. He said, “It’s clear that in the future, if you take photos at military exhibitions, you might be labeled as a ‘walking 500,000 RMB’, seen as a foreign spy. It sounds absurd, but they do have such intentions.”
The term “walking 500,000 RMB” originates from the reporting reward system within China’s Ministry of State Security. In 2017, the Beijing Municipal National Security Bureau issued measures stating that reporting espionage clues could reward a maximum of 500,000 RMB after verification, which was previously reported by Chinese state media such as People’s Daily and Xinhua.
Subsequently, the term “walking 500,000 RMB” has evolved on mainland Chinese cyberspace to become a label with sarcastic and threatening implications, suggesting that once someone is labeled as “foreign forces,” “spy,” or “a threat to national security personnel,” they could become a target for others to report in exchange for rewards. The term is often used to attack individuals with differing viewpoints, overseas individuals, journalists, scholars, human rights activists, and other groups.
In recent years, China’s Ministry of State Security has continued to release anti-espionage cases, incorporating everyday behaviors like photography, side jobs, travel, research, thesis data, and exhibition visits into national security propaganda. In May, Xinhua News Agency reposted a Ministry of State Security case stating that overseas accounts were using “part-time photography, 300 RMB daily wage” as bait, requiring university students to photograph crucial facilities like military ports, bridges, and airports. In April, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate website published similar cases suggesting that “casual photography” led to the leakage of state secrets.