CIA and MI6 Launch Joint Operation to Counter Chinese Infiltration of European Tech Firms

Intelligence agencies from the United States and the United Kingdom have launched an unprecedented joint operation targeting Chinese state-sponsored efforts to infiltrate European technology companies, according to three officials briefed on the matter.

The operation, codenamed SILICON WALL, has been running quietly since early 2025 and has already identified over forty individuals suspected of acting as talent recruiters for China's Ministry of State Security within research institutions across Germany, France, and the Netherlands.

"What we are seeing is not traditional espionage," said one Western intelligence official who spoke on condition of anonymity. "This is systematic, patient, and deeply embedded in the academic and corporate ecosystem."

The operation marks a significant escalation in Western counterintelligence efforts. For the first time, CIA officers embedded with MI6 teams have been granted direct access to European partner databases, streamlining the identification of suspects who operate across multiple jurisdictions.

Chinese officials denied the allegations, calling them fabricated and politically motivated. The Chinese embassy in London did not respond to a request for comment.

German federal prosecutors confirmed last month that they had opened preliminary investigations into three individuals linked to a Shanghai-based technology consulting firm. Similar proceedings are reportedly under way in the Netherlands, where two academics were placed under surveillance following a tip from a NATO intelligence liaison.

Analysts say the operation reflects a broader shift in Western strategy — away from reactive counterintelligence and toward proactive disruption of foreign intelligence networks before they can extract sensitive data.