The director of the fbi warned about the scale of chinese spying activity in a speech early this year. A lot of that activity is focused on acquiring commercial and defense technology. China's interests around the world have expanded so rapidly over the last three years its intelligence agencies sometimes have problems identifying clear priorities. The other weakness in chinese spy agencies is on intelligence analysis, which is sort of hobbled by a political culture where there are very few incentives for taking initiative or challenging orthodoxy.
In a global period of belt-tightening, popular anger will spill over. Our correspondent visits places where powderkegs seem closest to being lit; our predictive model suggests where might be next. China’s spies have a deserved reputation for hacking and harassing—but fall surprisingly short on other spooky skills. And why America is suffering a shortfall of lifeguards.
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