Joanna Keane

Spy turtles and spy fish have apparently been found swimming in a specific area, collecting what the Chinese say is sensitive data, which is then transmitted overseas using satellite.

Well, they're saying that foreign spies are attaching sensors to big maritime animals like turtles and fish to monitor the country's waters.

Now, these spy turtles and spy fish have apparently been found swimming in a specific area, collecting what the Chinese say is sensitive data, which is then transmitted overseas using satellite.

Now, this data, they've used examples like water temperature, ocean currents.

It does sound fairly innocent, but the Chinese say this can be used to build up a wider picture of coastal defences, which could then pose a threat to China's national security.

Now, their social media post is called Under the Deep Blue Undercurrents are Surging.

Now, the Ministry of State Security gives details of other espionage equipment.

So we've got an ocean monitoring buoy.

which is fitted with a sensor on top and has a chain to anchor it down.

Something called wave gliders.

These are devices powered by the waves and solar energy.

They have radio communication on board.

They can receive real-time satellite instructions and then transmit information back to military overseas.

And they also talk about ship-borne electronic equipment, basically devices that look like normal devices that you find on a ship, but they're actually being used for intelligence gathering.

So the appeal is the ministry saying, look, maritime security is an important part of national security.

They want stringent checks on equipment received from abroad and says companies shouldn't just be casually buying and installing equipment.

And of course, they've also called on fishermen to report any suspicious looking devices.

Well, we're used to, aren't we, Beijing and Western governments trading accusations of espionage.

In this case, it doesn't specify which foreign country is apparently using these devices.

But it has made claims in the past about espionage in its waters, including the South China Sea, the East China Sea, Taiwan Strait, some sensitive areas there.