As Americans and especially as college students, most of us live very comfortable lives by international standards. In an increasingly-globalized economy, however, our adversaries are ramping up efforts to steal industrial and military secrets — and any one of us could be the next target.

The FBI recently released a new video called “Game of Pawns,” which can be found on YouTube, detailing the experiences of a traitorous American student in China.

In the video, the student representing Glenn Duffie Shriver is in need of some quick cash to continue living the dream in a cultural megalopolis, Shanghai. He searches for employment online, eventually responding to an ad looking for foreign college students to write papers in exchange for money.

What he didn’t know at the time was as soon as he stepped inside that door, he was already being actively surveilled to determine if he would make a good foreign intelligence asset. To make a long story short, he was.

Shriver understood the dubious requests made of him and too-good-to-be-true cash rewards offered, but his avarice wouldn’t allow him to pass up the opportunity for an extended stay in China. 

He eventually agreed, after a number of increasingly large requests and cash rewards, to apply for positions with the CIA and State Department. Thankfully, he failed the security screenings during the interview, was found to be working for a foreign intelligence service, and was subsequently booked. 

There’s a larger picture here though: Glenn Shriver wasn’t the first, and he won’t be the last American college student to be targeted for recruitment. The FBI has developed a list of cautionary signs and protections students can take to protect themselves abroad.

For example, be wary of those asking you to provide information, classified of not, in exchange for payment or rewards. Additionally, it’s wise to avoid those with unscrupulous government affiliations.

According to NAFSA, a group specializing in international education, only 1 percent of American students studied abroad last year. A large percentage of these students are business or social science majors, which are two groups that actively work in competitive industries and U.S. government.

Oftentimes, foreign intelligence agents will target students who either already do or will sometime in the future have access to valuable information that could benefit them and hurt us.

According to Departmental Management at the United States Department of Agriculture, 64 percent of spies volunteer to work for foreign intelligence services. In 56 percent of cases, greed is the sole motivator.

CBS reports that Shriver received $70,000 from his handlers in China, which would put him in the same group as 26 percent of all offenders.

Foreign intelligence services follow a recruitment cycle wherein they first identify potential targets and assess them and their vulnerabilities, such as alcohol problems, drug abuse, or being disgruntled. They entice them to work for the agency through coercion and a motivator, such as stroking the target’s ego, and if all goes well they receive sensitive information.

Spy games aren’t just meant for those with access to top-secret information. In fact, one-third of those who have committed espionage since 1950 had no security clearances at all.

Graduate students are especially at risk since they perform high level work and conduct research beneficial to many different industries. Foreign intelligence will bug hotel rooms, intercept email, record phone calls, break into luggage, access and download information from laptops, and even recruit or substitute flight attendants on flights.

For these reasons, it’s important to keep any research documents or electronics on you at all times and encrypt this information when possible.

It’s more than likely you will not be solicited to conduct espionage against your country, and who would? Spying is a betrayal to the special relationship we hold with our family, friends, colleagues, and country.

Glenn Shriver certainly regretted his decision because the consequences will stay with him the rest of his life, and The Defense Security Service reports that his sentiments are not unique among those caught.

Espionage ends in lives lost or destroyed, so just be aware. Usually those who are recruited don’t realize it until it’s too late, and by then they are being blackmailed or threatened. When they are caught, some don’t even realize the severity of their actions.

Enjoy your time abroad. It will open you up to amazing new cultures, experiences and people. But if you are making strides in the academic community, be careful of divulging too much information. Have fun this summer and take in all that you can.

-Bryan Allen is a junior political science major from Puyallup. He can be contacted at 335-2290 or by [email protected]. The opinions expressed in this column are not necessarily those of the staff of The Daily Evergreen or those of Student Publications.