“A stunningly detailed history . . . from sexy socialite double agents to ‘kill switches’ implanted offshore in the computer chips for our electric grid” (R. James Woolsey, former director of Central Intelligence).
For decades, while America obsessed over Soviet spies, China quietly penetrated the highest levels of government. Now, for the first time, based on numerous interviews with key insiders at the FBI and CIA as well as with Chinese agents and people close to them, David Wise tells the full story of China’s many victories and defeats in its American spy wars.
Two key cases interweave throughout: Katrina Leung, code-named Parlor Maid, worked for the FBI for years even after she became a secret double agent for China, aided by love affairs with both of her FBI handlers. Here, too, is the inside story of the case, code-named Tiger Trap, of a key Chinese-American scientist suspected of stealing nuclear weapons secrets.
These two cases led to many others, involving famous names from Wen Ho Lee to Richard Nixon, stunning national security leaks, sophisticated cyberspying, and a West Coast spy ring whose members were sentenced in 2010. As concerns swirl about US-China relations and the challenges faced by our intelligence community, Tiger Trap provides an important overview from “America’s premier writer on espionage” (The Washington Post Book World).
“Wise’s conclusion is sobering—China’s spying on America is ongoing, current, and shows no signs of diminishing—and his book is a fascinating history of Chinese espionage.” —Publishers Weekly
“A fact-filled inside account, with sources named and no one spared.” —Seymour M. Hersh
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
June 1, 2018 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9780547554877
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9780547554877
- File size: 2615 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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February 14, 2011
Wise (Spy) leads readers into the "the wilderness of mirrors that is counterintelligence" for this history of Chinese espionage against the U.S. He reveals how Chinese intelligence has used ethnic Chinese in the U.S. to penetrate American counterintelligence and steal American nuclear weapons data. While Wise explores a spectrum of Chinese spying efforts, from Sun-Tzu's The Art of War to cyberspies, he homes in on two sensational cases, code-named Parlor Maid and Tiger Trap, that epitomize their tactics. Parlor Maid was the colorful Katrina Leung, a Chinese-American double agent who slept with her FBI handlers while stealing their secrets, and Tiger Trap refers to the FBI's operation to expose China's moles inside America's nuclear weapons labs. Wise's conclusion is sobering—"China's spying on America is ongoing, current, and shows no sign of diminishing"—and his book is a fascinating history of Chinese espionage that should appeal to a diverse readership. -
July 1, 2011
Wise (Spy: The Inside Story of How the FBI's Robert Hanssen Betrayed America) explores the spying by China on the United States since 1985, arguing that China's efforts are very different from traditional Cold War spying, glamorized over the past 50 years. Money and sex are not the main ways that China manipulates and motivates spies. Rather, in thousands of contacts with students, tourists, trade delegations, and visiting scientists, the Chinese intelligence agencies patiently emphasize appeals to personal relationships (guanxi) and ask these contacts to help China better itself. Not only does this create many thousands of potential spies, but there are few simple "just follow the money!" pathways for U.S. agents to use to track and uncover the networks. Through recounting U.S. counterintelligence operations, Wise provides scintillating and embarrassing details of counterintelligence failures and shows how China has penetrated many secret U.S. programs. He also demonstrates that complacency might be the biggest enemy of U.S. security and counterintelligence efforts. VERDICT Wise's readable and well-researched book is an early effort on a topic that will be important for decades and a must-read for anyone interested in this subject. Highly recommended.--Mark K. Jones, Mercantile Lib., Cincinnati, OH
Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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