New Zealand SIS reviews Chinese database for security reasons

The New Zealand Security Intelligence Service is warning people to check what they share online after it was revealed that a company with ties to the Chinese military has notable profiles on Kiwis.

It follows a large-scale data breach by Shenzhen-based big data company Zhenhua Data, which reportedly works with China’s state security and intelligence service, the Ministry of State Security.

Politicians, their families and defense officials are included in a list that identifies nearly 800 New Zealanders.

Rebecca Kitteridge, Chief Security Officer, said that at this stage, NZSIS believed that the profiles found in the dataset had been compiled from publicly available information.

“While we are still evaluating the information, at this stage we believe that the information is drawn primarily from publicly accessible sources, such as social media and news reports,” he said.

“We know that different organizations collect information of this nature from publicly accessible sources for a variety of purposes, ranging from private companies wanting to conduct marketing or research at one end of the spectrum, to governments seeking to influence public discussion or gather intelligence. in other countries in the other “.

Kitteridge said she understood that some people might not have been aware that information could be collected in this way, but it served as a warning.

“This is a timely reminder for everyone to check the security settings on their social media accounts and review the amount of information they share on the Internet,” he said.

The SIS had the information related to New Zealand and would review it “for potential risks and security concerns,” Kitteridge said.

“New Zealanders make up a small part of the data set, which includes information on large numbers of people from a variety of different countries and backgrounds,” he said.

The information was initially leaked from Zhenhua Data, a company based in the city of Shenzhen, in southern China, to American academic Christopher Balding.

More than 250,000 listings in the 2.4 million people Overseas Key Information Database (OKIDB), apparently built on open source information, were leaked to Balding, who had worked in China until 2018, and mined by Australian cybersecurity expert Rob Potter.

Listings include city of residence, links to social media accounts, and notes indicating a particular interest in job titles or criminal convictions for tax or traffic offenses.

The leaked information was provided to a consortium of international journalists and the findings have sparked a storm of controversy in Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom.

The Deputy Prime Minister previously warned that “malicious actors” were exploiting Kiwis’ private information after his daughter was attacked and tracked down by a company with ties to the Chinese military.

The families of Winston Peters and other high-level politicians, including Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, have also been targeted by the Chinese big data company.

The profiles of Ardern’s sister and parents have been built on a secret Chinese database, along with the mother of former Commerce Minister Todd McClay and one of former Prime Minister Sir John Key’s sons.

Canterbury University professor Anne-Marie Brady, a China specialist, said the revelations showed a concerted campaign of influence from China targeting political and business elites.

“Our New Zealand politicians are being attacked on a large scale and in minutiae,” he said.