China warns: Data leaks from wind turbines could endanger national security

China's Ministry of State Security has warned of the risk of data leaks from wind measurement towers – tall structures that measure meteorological data such as wind speed, direction, temperature and air pressure – as part of comprehensive measures to safeguard the country's national security.

A resident of a coastal city reported to national security authorities that a company had illegally built a wind tower near a sensitive location, and the resident suspected that the tower could be used to collect sensitive data, the report said.

The Ministry of State Security has investigated and found that the wind tower is capable of analyzing and sending data, CCTV said. The ministry added: “If this data goes abroad, it could pose a threat to national security.”

The authorities prevented the data from being passed on abroad, the broadcaster said.

The report did not provide details about the identity of the resident, the location of the wind tower, which coastal town it was in, who operated the tower or whether there were any criminal consequences resulting from the case.

In another vaguely described case, a wind measuring tower near a scientific research base came under suspicion over fears that it might have illegally collected data and transmitted it abroad, the report said.

The report said that after an investigation, it was found that the tower was not legally registered and that its data transmission methods were “complex, posing significant security risks.” The tower was later demolished, CCTV said.

The warning came after the Communist Party leadership stressed the country's national security efforts during the crucial Third Plenum in July.

Moreover, this development comes against the backdrop of intensifying strategic competition between China and the US-led West in all areas, including technology and trade.

Last year, Beijing passed a new counter-espionage law that expanded both the definition of espionage and the investigative powers of national security agencies.

In 2022, the China Meteorological Administration, the Ministry of State Security and the National Administration for the Protection of State Secrets revised a regulation on “foreign-related” meteorological discoveries and data, which sets out conditions that can lead to criminal charges.

According to the regulation, no weather stations with foreign connections may be set up in sensitive areas and no weather data may be passed on to foreign authorities without permission.