Good day everyone,
I hope you are all having a good day, welcome to CryptoGod-1's blog on all things crypto. In this post I will be looking at the recent news of a Chinese man who sold state secrets in return for crypto.
Chinese State Secrets for Crypto
An official from China has been sentenced to life in prison after it emerged they had sold state secrets for over 1 million yuan in cryptocurrency, according to recent reports from Anping Province’s Ministry of National Security. This action was driven by their significant losses from crypto investments, and the official was sentenced on the 8th of November. The state secrets were sold to foreign entities.
The official was named as Wang Moumou, and he was sentenced for providing confidential state information to foreign agents in exchange for financial compensation of over 1 million yuan in crypto transactions. The People’s Court delivered the verdict while citing that Wang’s engagement with foreign intelligence agencies along with his accumulation of more than 1 million yuan through crypto transactions was the reason for his sentencing.
Wang had reportedly accumulated substantial debts from unsuccessful cryptocurrency investments and in a bid to resolve his financial struggles he sought part-time work on an online forum. This is where he inadvertently revealed his status as a civil servant. This then led to his contact with foreign agents who recruited him to supply confidential information.
Wang allegedly provided various state secrets which included a number of smaller payments in exchange for “a few photos and documents" initially. As he continued to receive funds Wang decided to expand he activity and ended up passing on high-level security documents. During investigations it was discovered that several secret documents were found on his computer, which were obtained by circumventing established security measures. Chinese outlet Weixin reported:
“The national security agency found that Wang provided top-secret and confidential state secrets to the other party and obtained more than 1 million yuan in spy funds through virtual currency recharge and trading.”
The criminal law mandates in China mean severe penalties are attributed with espionage, which can include over ten years or life imprisonment. The Law on Guarding State Secrets means agencies are required to establish robust confidentiality protocols. Wang was convicted by the People's Court for espionage and he was sentenced to life in prison. It also stripped him of all his political rights. The Ministry of State Security added that Wang’s unit failed to implement adequate confidentiality protocols and this in turn allowed for the security breach to happen. National security agencies have instructed the unit to adopt corrective measures.
Sentencing of Wang is the latest in a recent series of crypto-related espionage and fraud cases. Zhang Moumou was recently extradited to China after he masterminded a $14 billion crypto pyramid scheme in Thailand. His MBI group had been operating since 2012 and had promised high returns through virtual currencies. Over 10 million people were victims of this fraud.
Have a great day.
Peace. CryptoGod-1.
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