UK intelligence chiefs issue ‘urgent’ spy briefing

• Britain's intelligence chiefs have delivered urgent, closed-door briefings to leaders from over 70 universities and officials from all UK political parties regarding significant foreign interference threats.
• MI5 and the National Cyber Security Centre detailed methods used by hostile states, including China and Russia, to influence academic research, teaching content, and manipulate political processes.
• Concerns were raised about Chinese agents using professional networking sites like LinkedIn and financial inducements to recruit academic staff and students.
• A package of measures, backed by a £3 million investment, includes a secure portal for universities to report suspicious approaches directly to security services and a new proactive advisory service.
• This initiative follows previous warnings about Chinese espionage and a review into foreign financial interference, with a UK university recently apologising for halting research into forced labour in China due to external pressure.