Academic espionage, and efforts to strengthen the knowledge security safeguards, have become leading topics in the realm of national security. MI5 boss McCallum went as far to describe the academic environments as “Magnetic targets for espionage and manipulation”. 

But what is it about academic institutions that is so attractive to foreign nation-state actors?

Open environments: Universities rely on and strive thanks to their open-door and collaborative environments. But when are these doors too wide to effectively protect the sensitive knowledge developed within academic institutions? The rise in academic espionage has seen universities and governments shut their doors to foreign researchers and students. A fine balance is evidently yet to be struck between the vital openness of academia whilst ensuring the adequate protection of knowledge and security.

Technological innovations: Universities are not only targeted due to the open environment in which they collaborate. Rather, the depth and breadth of technologies developed at universities, and their potential dual-use applicability, represent incredibly attractive targets for foreign strategic powers to acquire innovative solutions at a fraction of the cost of development.

Modus Operandi: Foreign actors use a range of methods to acquire knowledge and technology from academic institutions. This can include the exploitation of academic partnerships, the recruitment of strategic individuals to talent programmes, the infiltration of students and researchers, or the coercion of (former) compatriots now working abroad.