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Comment by llm_nerd | Hacker News Reader

Why couldn't it be?

Canada has an extremely generous, massively exploited foreign worker program (it is actually one of the reasons this government is profoundly unpopular). ByteDance, like every other company, can unilaterally declare that they need to bring in an entirely foreign staff and get it rubber stamped. Given the company's alleged closeness with the party, using it as an easy vehicle to drop loads of intelligence workers of various sorts in Canada would be logical. Similarly China has a thing with running intimidation tactics against Chinese ex-pats living in Western countries.

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It's not impossible, but you'd think they come up with a better front company than bytedance, of all companies. It's like China accusing that McDonalds is a spy front.

Perhaps, but China really doesn't have a lot of companies with offices in the West. When China tries to buy Western countries they are often blocked for the same national security reasons, as has happened several times in Canada.

A nondescript consumer appliance or clothing "sales office" is infinitely better than bytedance, a company that has received significant flak in the media. The Biden administration's policy of "small yard, high fence" means that unless you're trying to import chips, AI tech, drones, or battery tech, you're probably fine. Nobody is going to blink an eye at some Chinese company trying to sell rice cookers.

yes, Chinese ppl are Chinese spies. This is Western values. Chinese ppl also breathed the same air, you want ban that too? It is national security risk, you are breathing the same air a commie just breathed. I find it really interesting how ppl can just think "could", I feel you watch too much war movies. Talk to real people more, I think you will find that ppl are more the same than different, and we all want peace, good life, that is it.

Oh all Chinese are spies. China can turn cars into killing machines, Westerners really watch too much science fiction and cold war movies. This never crossed our minds this could be a thing and no one is this boring and morally bad to do this. But seems Westerners really like to entertain these ideas.

Didn't notice this comment previously as it happened days after.

However since the government has revealed that ByteDance employees in Canada -- Chinese nationals -- have acted against the national security of Canada. And just to be clear, this has happened again, and again, and again, and again. This is a countless line of Chinese nationals and their organizations operating as fronts for the Chinese government.

>Oh all Chinese are spies.

Nope, but enough are that it's a recurring problem.

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