The Ministry of Public Security of China has investigated more than 36,000 cybercrime this year,
China’s police has investigated more than 36.000 cases of cyber-related crime since the beginning of 2026, according to the Ministry of Public Security (MPS), as part of the nationwide “Clean Internet—2026” campaign. The figures were released during China’s National Cybersecurity Week, held from 14 to 20 September 2026, whose theme is “Cybersecurity for the People, Cybersecurity Relies on the People—Security in the Intelligent Era.” The campaign brings together law-enforcement, regulatory and other government bodies and reflects the increasing integration of cybercrime enforcement with broader cybersecurity and digital-governance policies.
The scale and composition of the cases are particularly significant. China authorities report having solved more than 4.100 cases involving the theft and illicit sale of personal information, including “doxxing”-type activities, while more than 3.900 hacking cases have reportedly been investigated. Authorities have also targeted the use of malicious programmes, the illegal control of computer systems, online fraud and the production or dissemination of fabricated information.
According to a statement released by the MPS, in response to the frequent spread of online rumors involving accidents and disasters, as well as economic and livelihood issues, through fabricated facts, manipulated content and AI-generated material, the cybersecurity authorities within public security organs have conducted rapid investigations and taken swift action, solving more than 11.000 related cases so far this year, while promptly conducting rumor-debunking campaigns and responding to public concerns. The MPS describes its approach as combining “full-chain” enforcement, targeted action against categories of crime and ecosystem governance, suggesting an effort to disrupt not only individual perpetrators but also the infrastructures, services and criminal networks that enable cybercrime.
The crackdown extends beyond criminal investigations. Under the parallel “Cybersecurity Protection—2026” initiative, China authorities report having conducted more than 7.900 cybersecurity and data-security inspections, identifying and rectifying approximately 38.000 security vulnerabilities. They also publicly exposed 652 mobile applications accused of improperly collecting or using personal information and initiated more than 38.000 administrative cases concerning failures to comply with cybersecurity, data-security and personal-information protection obligations.
During Cybersecurity Week, Chinese authorities explicitly highlighted the emergence of an AI-driven cyber threat environment, characterised by increasingly intelligent, automated and covert attacks. The official discussion identifies the convergence of artificial intelligence, networks and connected devices as a factor reshaping both cyber threats and national cybersecurity capabilities. The authorities have consequently placed AI security, data protection, personal information and emerging technologies alongside conventional cybercrime within the same governance framework.
Why does it matter?
This development provides a concrete national indicator of several broader global tendencies. First, cybercrime is increasingly being addressed as an ecosystem rather than a collection of isolated incidents, with states seeking to combine investigation, disruption, regulatory enforcement and prevention. Second, the boundary between cybercrime, data exploitation, online manipulation and broader information-security concerns is becoming less distinct. Third, the rapid incorporation of AI into both legitimate digital activity and malicious operations is accelerating the automation, scalability and sophistication of cyber threats. Finally, the Chinese figures illustrate the growing importance of national cyber-capacity and enforcement data as indicators of the evolution of the global digital threat landscape.
It illustrates a broader Chinese model in which criminal enforcement, administrative supervision, technical inspection and data governance are increasingly treated as interconnected components of cybersecurity. Monitoring such developments comparatively can therefore help identify whether these trends remain primarily national responses or form part of a wider movement towards more integrated, technology-intensive and state-supported approaches to cybersecurity governance.
The development also needs to be viewed against the technological transformation of the threat environment. While conventional physical crimes in the real world are on a downward trend, cybercrime continues to evolve and take new forms. Cybercrime is becoming increasingly organized and diverse, requiring a systemic approach that extends beyond software and platforms to device-level prevention. With AI-powered devices becoming more prevalent, preventive measures at these entry points are also needed.
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