China contains all the hallmarks of a counterintelligence state, with an intelligence security apparatus unprecedented in both scale and sophistication. Traditionally considered a "hard target" nation by the US intelligence community, the use of mass surveillance against its domestic population and intrusive collection of personal information from telecommunications to travel, flight, hotel check-in and internet browsing data has made it challenging for US intelligence agencies to collect information on developments within the country. The human intelligence (HUMINT) model of intelligence collection has been remarked as obsolete as a result of development of technology such as facial recognition, biometrics, wifi sniffers and pervasive use of CCTV cameras making it: "all but impossible" to disguise human operatives from official scrutiny. Political commentary has also focused on the extremely closed nature of the Xi Jinping Administration, with Richard McGregor of the Lowy Institute describing the Communist Party's culture as one of "radical secrecy".
