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'Unprecedented' database leak exposes Chinese Communist Party members 'embedded' in western companies and governments: report

This is extremely concerning 

Feng Li/Getty Images

 PAUL SACCA

A massive database of nearly 2 million registered Chinese Communist Party members has been leaked, providing the rest of the world with an "unprecedented view" into the structure of how China could infiltrate western businesses and companies, including ones in the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom.

The worrisome leak was reported by Sky News Australia, which said the database breach "lifts the lid on how the party operates under President and Chairman Xi Jinping." 

"Communist party branches have been set up inside western companies, allowing the infiltration of those companies by CCP members — who, if called on, are answerable directly to the communist party, to the Chairman, the president himself," Sky News' Sharri Markson said. "Along with the personal identifying details of 1.95 million communist party members, mostly from Shanghai, there are also the details of 79,000 communist party branches, many of them inside companies."

"It is believed to be the first leak of its kind in the world," Markson proclaimed."Detailed analysis" of the database leak revealed that there are 123 "party loyalists" employed at Pfizer and AstraZeneca, according to the Daily Mail. Both pharmaceutical behemoths are developing coronavirus vaccines.

There were allegedly "hundreds" of Chinese Communist Party members employed at "firms with defense industry interests" such as Airbus, Boeing, and Rolls-Royce "employed hundreds of party members."

There were reportedly 600 CCP members working at 19 branches of British banks, such as HSBC and Standard Chartered in 2016. The CCP members even infiltrated British consulates and universities, according to the report. 

The database leak reveals the names, party positions, date of birth, national identification number, and ethnicity of the CCP members. In some cases, the list even includes the phone numbers of the members. 

The breach of the Chinese government database originally happened in April 2016, when the data was allegedly extracted by Chinese dissidents and whistleblowers and leaked on Telegram, an instant messaging app.

Markson added a disclaimer, "It is worth noting that there's no suggestion that these members have committed espionage — but the concern is over whether Australia or these companies knew of the CCP members and if so have any steps been taken to protect their data and people."