China’s intelligence playbook is expanding, with a recent scheme targeting former American government workers using fraudulent recruiting companies as bait. The discovery points to an aggressive and calculated campaign to exploit U.S. transparency and freedom for intelligence gain.
According to research by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, four companies tied to a Chinese tech firm used misleading job ads to connect with laid-off U.S. personnel. Each of the firms shared a digital footprint with Smiao Intelligence, an internet company in China that went offline once reporting on the network began.
🔔‼️A secret Network of Federal Employees Resists Trump Administration.
"Along side with this, new US intelligence also shows that the Chinese regime is attempting to recruit disgruntled US federal employees".
➡️ https://t.co/dnfDaZrggq pic.twitter.com/yM8DQsP5vW— The Knight News (@Knight981311) March 8, 2025
Max Lesser, who led the investigation, said the effort mirrors past Chinese espionage strategies that used fake consulting agencies to reach Americans with access to non-public government data. These efforts often begin with job ads and end with subtle attempts to extract classified or proprietary information.
RiverMerge Strategies was among the firms operating the scam. Though it claimed to be a geopolitical risk firm, the Singapore address on its site was actually a student hostel, and the U.S. address led to a document-filing office. The company’s contact number matched one used by a Chinese software firm associated with military cyber operations.
Recruitment ads for RiverMerge on LinkedIn gained traction in February before being deleted. One ad specifically asked for candidates with connections to policy institutions and Washington think tanks.
Wavemax Innovation, another company in the group, promoted job openings geared toward recently laid-off federal employees. Their ad, posted to Craigslist, requested experience in fields such as research and policy analysis. Like RiverMerge, Wavemax had no physical presence at its listed address.
Analysts believe the network’s goal was to reach former U.S. government employees and gradually extract details about sensitive operations or personnel. These campaigns may also attempt to turn Americans into unwitting assets by building relationships under false pretenses.
Past Chinese intelligence efforts have used similar tactics, including one 2020 case where a fake recruiter paid Americans to write classified reports without disclosing the work was for Beijing.
