Canadian woman arrested in NATO spy case raises questions about security vetting

A Canadian woman arrested in Belgium on suspicion of espying for a hostile foreign power had held numerous federal jobs over six years, court documents show, raising questions about how thoroughly Canada vets public servants with access to sensitive information.

Belgian authorities arrested the woman on July 25 at NATO's Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) in Belgium. Court documents obtained by reporters identify her as Biwei Zhang, who also uses the name Claire Z. The allegations have not been tested in court.

According to federal court filings, Zhang worked through the Federal Student Work Experience Program at Employment and Social Development Canada between May 2017 and June 2019. She then held an indeterminate position at Statistics Canada for about a year starting in May 2020. A LinkedIn profile linked to her also lists work at the National Research Council and the Canadian Space Agency.

Zhang's security clearance history adds complexity to the case. In 2019, the Public Service Commission of Canada found she had committed fraud after submitting two applications for the same Canadian Border Services Agency job using different email addresses. She was ordered to notify the commission before accepting any future public service role and to complete an ethics course. Her application for judicial review of that decision was dismissed.

Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canadian officials have been involved in the case from the start and that the government should "take stock and take lessons from this." He stopped short of committing to a formal review of security screening processes.

Michael Wernick, who served as clerk of the Privy Council from 2016 to 2019, said the screening system has long been under-resourced. He described the issue as "faulty wiring" — security screening and personnel management systems don't adequately share information. "The security screening has a certain focus, and then there's all these management and personnel checks, and the two systems aren't really well connected," Wernick said. "I think it's probably worth taking a look at it and probably doing some rewiring."

Wesley Wark, a senior fellow at the University of Waterloo's Balsillie School of International Affairs, cautioned against drawing firm conclusions. Most insider threats develop after someone is already on the job, he said, meaning no pre-employment clearance could catch someone who becomes a security risk later. "Very, very little" is known about the case, making it difficult to assess whether flaws in Canadian screening played a role, Wark said.