A Chinese spy balloon, which made its way across the US earlier this year, had the capability to transmit information back to Beijing in real time. According to a source familiar with the matter, the balloon was able to capture imagery and collect signals intelligence from US military sites, including Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana.
The US government still does not know for certain whether the Chinese government could wipe the balloon's data as it received it, raising questions about whether there is intelligence that the balloon gathered that the US still doesn't know about. The intelligence community has been relatively nonplussed by the information the balloon was able to gather, as it is not significantly more sophisticated than what Chinese satellites are able to glean from orbiting over similar locations.
While the balloon's flight over the US did provide some valuable insights, a US intelligence official told CNN that "analysis of the wreckage of the High Altitude Balloon remains ongoing" and so far, its flight does not appear to have provided critical new insights to Beijing. The US also knew what the balloon's path would be and was able to protect sensitive sites and censor some signals before the balloon could pick them up.
The Chinese surveillance program that includes similar balloons is believed to be run out of the small Chinese province of Hainan, according to officials who spoke with CNN. While the exact size of the fleet of Chinese surveillance balloons is unknown, sources say that the program has conducted at least two dozen missions over at least five continents in recent years.
A senior State Department official had said earlier this year that the balloon "was capable of conducting signals intelligence collection operations" as it floated across the US. However, China has maintained that its balloon was actually just a weather balloon thrown off course, and the US has been assessing whether it was deliberately maneuvered into the continental US by the Chinese government.
Despite some uncertainty about the balloon's true intentions, officials believe that China did have some ability to maneuver the balloon once it was over Montana. The balloon then appeared to take advantage of its position to loiter over sensitive sites and try to collect intelligence, raising concerns about the Chinese surveillance program and how much information it was able to gather.
The US government still does not know for certain whether the Chinese government could wipe the balloon's data as it received it, raising questions about whether there is intelligence that the balloon gathered that the US still doesn't know about. The intelligence community has been relatively nonplussed by the information the balloon was able to gather, as it is not significantly more sophisticated than what Chinese satellites are able to glean from orbiting over similar locations.
While the balloon's flight over the US did provide some valuable insights, a US intelligence official told CNN that "analysis of the wreckage of the High Altitude Balloon remains ongoing" and so far, its flight does not appear to have provided critical new insights to Beijing. The US also knew what the balloon's path would be and was able to protect sensitive sites and censor some signals before the balloon could pick them up.
The Chinese surveillance program that includes similar balloons is believed to be run out of the small Chinese province of Hainan, according to officials who spoke with CNN. While the exact size of the fleet of Chinese surveillance balloons is unknown, sources say that the program has conducted at least two dozen missions over at least five continents in recent years.
A senior State Department official had said earlier this year that the balloon "was capable of conducting signals intelligence collection operations" as it floated across the US. However, China has maintained that its balloon was actually just a weather balloon thrown off course, and the US has been assessing whether it was deliberately maneuvered into the continental US by the Chinese government.
Despite some uncertainty about the balloon's true intentions, officials believe that China did have some ability to maneuver the balloon once it was over Montana. The balloon then appeared to take advantage of its position to loiter over sensitive sites and try to collect intelligence, raising concerns about the Chinese surveillance program and how much information it was able to gather.
yeah so like the US has been trying to spin this whole thing as if they're just being paranoid or something, but I think its kinda obvious that China's been trying to keep tabs on them for a while now... 
I mean, who needs balloons when you have satellites, right? 
But seriously, if the Chinese are just gonna keep doing this, we need to be prepared and not be all like "oh no, they're spying on us" 
. Like, China's been doing surveillance for years now, what did we expect? 
! They're using these balloons to gather intel on us without even trying to hide it - its like they think we dont notice 
. The fact that China is just being all casual about their balloon program and saying "oh its just a weather balloon" is pretty laughable 
. We need to be keeping an eye on these guys and making sure they're not getting away with too much! 
so China has these spy balloons circling above us & they can literally get info from our military bases lmao i mean we know its not a big deal cuz we had time 2 notice & prep but still its kinda sketchy that they could just loiter over sensitive sites like Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana & collect signals intelligence idk wut kind of intel they would've gotten from there tho 
And what's with the lack of critical new insights for Beijing? Did they just send it on a wild goose chase or something? 
This whole thing feels like a major intel fail, if you ask me 
. Like, I get it, they wanna know what we're up to but can't they just send a nice email or something? 
. And honestly, how do they even track these things? Do they have some super advanced spy thingy? 
. It's like they're trying to create a virtual perimeter around their country without anyone noticing 
. And let's not forget, this isn't just some isolated incident - we're talking about at least two dozen missions on multiple continents! That's some serious overreach if you ask me.
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are already doing what that balloon did... we just didn't know it yet 
. those chinese satels r probably watching us right now too lol 
but this is on another level 
. They're basically just cruising over our country with a high-tech balloon 
collecting secrets and whatnot. And the craziest part is, we didn't even know it was there until it flew right under our noses 
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. Anyone else got a bad feeling about this? 
. the fact that china knows exactly where to position their balloons to gather sensitive info from us is wild - did they really think they could just waltz in here and start spying on us without getting caught? 
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. And the fact that they think China might've wiped their data as it was being transmitted is giving me major paranoid vibes 
. I mean, what if they did know some secret intel we don't? 
. This whole thing is just too intense for me 
... come on! We've seen some pretty convincing denials from our friends in Beijing and they're still not giving us any concrete answers 
.
. The US knew the balloon's path all along, so we could prep up some security 
. They've been doing this for years and it's not like we're going to catch them off guard next time 
.
. Let's keep an eye on these balloons (and China's activities) and see what else they come up with 
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, conducting at least 5 continents worth of missions 
. Hainan province is like their surveillance hub 
. We don't know how big this program is or what they're using it for 
. We need to up our game and stay one step ahead 
. It's like, what were they really looking for? 
. Maybe it's just paranoia on my part, but I think we need to keep a close eye on China's moves 
. I'm not saying we should be paranoid or anything, but this whole thing does feel a bit like a game of cat and mouse 
. On the other hand, if China's got that kinda capability, it raises some serious questions about global security & cooperation 
. Can't help but wonder what else they're hiding up their sleeves