Florida Man Jailed for Leaking Secrets to Chinese Intelligence

A 59-year-old IT specialist from Florida has been sentenced to four years in prison for passing confidential information to Chinese intelligence. U.S. citizen Ping Li pleaded guilty to conspiring to act as an agent for China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS). The investigation revealed that the transfer of data had been ongoing since 2012.

For two decades, Li worked at Verizon, later joining Infosys, one of India’s largest IT companies. Li fulfilled MSS requests, providing information on Chinese dissidents, democracy advocates, members of the Falun Gong religious movement, and cybersecurity data.

In the spring of 2021, an MSS operative requested information from Li regarding cyberattacks on American companies, including a widely publicized incident involving a major corporation. Four days later, the requested data was delivered. A year later, Li received a request for materials on cybersecurity training at his new company, which he supplied the same day. Their correspondence included discussions of hacker tactics.

Among the information sought by MSS were details about the SolarWinds cyberattack, which impacted the U.S. government in 2021. Li used anonymous email accounts and made frequent trips to China for in-person meetings with MSS representatives. Additionally, in June 2022, Li provided the agency with biographical information about an individual who had emigrated from China to the United States.

Li was apprehended on July 20. During initial interrogations, he denied any collaboration but later confessed after being confronted with copies of his correspondence with MSS agents. The investigation revealed that Li had shared internal cybersecurity materials, access to which was strictly restricted.

In addition to the prison sentence, the court ordered Li to pay a $250,000 fine. Following his release, he will remain under supervision for three years.