Russia And China Seek To Recruit Fired Feds As Spies

ABC News reports:

Foreign adversaries including Russia and China are targeting government workers who have been laid off amid the Trump administration’s attempt to downsize to recruit as spies, according to new intelligence.

“New intelligence indicates agents from China, Russia, and other countries have set their sights on recently fired probationary workers, or those with security clearances, hoping to obtain valuable information about U.S. critical infrastructure or national security interests,” according to intelligence distributed by the U.S. Coast Guard to its workforce.

“These foreign intelligence officers actively search LinkedIn, TikTok, Reddit, and Chinese social media site Xiaohongshu — known as RedNote — for potential sources,” it added. “In at least one instance, a foreign agent was instructed to create a company profile on LinkedIn, post a job listing, and actively track federal employees who indicated they were ‘open for work.'”

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Foreign adversaries are targeting government workers who have been laid off amid the Trump administration’s attempt to downsize to recruit as spies, according to new intelligence. https://t.co/amlPmRefyb

— ABC News (@ABC) April 5, 2025