# State Security Police > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/State_Security_Police > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/State_Security_Police.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Security_Police > Source revision: 1353671663 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Chinese secret police Law enforcement agency People's Police of State Security Organs 国家安全机关人民警察 Guójiā Ānquán Jīguān Rénmín Jǐngchá Flag of the People's Police Common name State Security Police Abbreviation SSP Agency overview Formed 1983; 43 years ago (1983) Jurisdictional structure National agency China Operations jurisdiction China General nature Secret police Operational structure Headquarters Yidongyuan, Beijing, China Elected officer responsible Chen Yixin, Minister of State Security Parent agency Ministry of State Security The **People's Police of State Security Organs**[a], informally known as the **State Security Police** (**SSP**)[b] is the [secret police](/source/Secret_police) component of China's [Ministry of State Security](/source/Ministry_of_State_Security_(China)) (MSS). The organization is concerned with [internal security](/source/Domestic_security), [counterintelligence](/source/Counterintelligence), and mitigating [subversion](/source/Subversion) of the [unified state power](/source/Unified_state_power) of the [Chinese Communist Party](/source/Chinese_Communist_Party). It maintains expansive authorities to conduct warrantless searches and detention. It is one of the primary organizations responsible for suppression of [political dissent](/source/Political_dissent) and the administration of China's [internet censorship system](/source/Internet_censorship_in_China).[1] Though branded with the [People's Police](/source/People's_Police_(China)) name, the State Security Police are operated entirely separately by [intelligence officers](/source/Intelligence_officer) of the MSS. The agency is best known for its [*invitations to tea*](/source/Invitation_to_tea), a [summons](/source/Summons) and interrogation issued for minor instances of dissent aimed at intimidating and deterring Chinese citizens from further unapproved behavior. Further enforcement actions can escalate to secret trials, and lengthy sentences in the agency's [own secret prisons](/source/Beijing_State_Security_Bureau_Detention_Center) which a [United Nations](/source/United_Nations) [Working Group](/source/Working_group) has described as "tantamount to enforced disappearance."[2] The SSP should not be confused with the [Political Security Bureau](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Political_Security_Bureau&action=edit&redlink=1) of the [Ministry of Public Security](/source/Ministry_of_Public_Security_(China)), despite sometimes similar duties and overlapping missions. ## History Dress uniform of a State Security Police officer. Established in 1983, the SSP has a presence in every [province](/source/Provinces_of_China), [autonomous region](/source/Autonomous_regions_of_China), and [direct-administered municipality](/source/Direct-administered_municipality) in China, as well as an increased presence in coastal areas and some municipalities with heavy contact with foreign countries.[3] ## Authorities As a component of the Ministry of State Security, the State Security Police have broad authorities with little oversight. Chapter 1 of the [Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China](/source/Criminal_Law_of_the_People's_Republic_of_China) lists twelve core crimes which the agency is authorized to enforce: 1. [Treason](/source/Treason) 1. [Separatism](/source/Separatism_in_China) 1. [Inciting](/source/Incitement) separatism 1. [Armed rebellion](/source/Rebellion) and [riot](/source/Riot) 1. [Subversion](/source/Subversion) of [state power](/source/Unified_state_power) 1. Inciting subversion of state power 1. Financing criminal activities endangering national security 1. [Defection](/source/Defection) 1. Defection to the enemy 1. [Espionage](/source/Espionage) 1. Providing intelligence to foreign organizations 1. Crimes of financing enemies Of the twelve, *inciting subversion of state power* is the justification most frequently used to clamp down on dissidents.[4] The SSP is also tasked with the security of the [Belt and Road Initiative](/source/Belt_and_Road_Initiative), carrying out [internet censorship](/source/Internet_censorship_in_China), and in 2024 was given the authority to conduct [warrantless searches](/source/Warrantless_search) of electronic devices.[5] ## Enforcement Those arrested by the State Security Police can be subject to [secret trials](/source/Secret_trials) and may find themselves jailed in a [State Security Bureau Detention Center](/source/Beijing_State_Security_Bureau_Detention_Center), special purpose prisons operated by several major municipal branches of the MSS, as well as [Residential Surveillance at a Designated Location](/source/Residential_Surveillance_at_a_Designated_Location) (RSDL) [enforced disappearance](/source/Enforced_disappearance) facilities, psychiatric hospitals, and other [black jails](/source/Black_jails).[6][2] In recent years, State Security charges have brought consistently higher average sentences in Chinese courts. According to the U.S. government's human rights watchdog [Congressional Executive Commission on China](/source/Congressional-Executive_Commission_on_China), "authorities sentenced 1,422 [prisoners of conscience](/source/Prisoner_of_conscience) between 2019 and 2024, with a six-year average prison term, which increased to a seven-year average if the case involved state security charges."[2] ## Activities ### Internet censorship The State Security Police are tasked with much of the active topic-based censorship of China's internet and are embedded within the organization of every major Chinese tech company. [Tencent](/source/Tencent), owner of China's leading social media app [WeChat](/source/WeChat), has at least one floor of its [Shenzhen](/source/Shenzhen) headquarters "exclusively reserved for internet inspectors composed of state security police, national security staff, and online censors.”[7] ### Warrantless searches of electronics Under new authorities introduced in 2024, officers of the State Security Police can stop people and search their devices without the need for a warrant, or even an ongoing criminal investigation.[5] ## References 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Scoggins, Suzanne E. (2018-10-23). ["Policing Modern China"](https://ssrn.com/abstract=3358916). *China Law and Society Review*. **3** (2): 79–117. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1163/25427466-00302001](https://doi.org/10.1163%2F25427466-00302001). Finally, the state security police are administered by the Ministry of State Security and charged with preventing foreign espionage, sabotage, and conspiracies (Ma 1997, 117). Though all carry the name of police, none are governed by MPS. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:1_4-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:1_4-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:1_4-2) [2025 Annual Report](https://www.cecc.gov/sites/evo-subsites/cecc.house.gov/files/2025-12/fullcecc2025.pdf) (PDF) (Report). [Congressional-Executive Commission on China](/source/Congressional-Executive_Commission_on_China). December 2025. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Wang, Xiaohai (2015). "Key Themes of Policing". *Empowerment on Chinese Police Force's Role in Social Service*. [Springer](/source/Springer_Science%2BBusiness_Media). p. 43. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1007/978-3-662-45614-9](https://doi.org/10.1007%2F978-3-662-45614-9). [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-3-662-45613-2](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-3-662-45613-2). [LCCN](/source/LCCN_(identifier)) [2015937180](https://lccn.loc.gov/2015937180). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** Chun-mei, Hwang (2023-09-18). ["State security police guard dissident sculptor in Beijing hospital"](https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/china-artist-09182023155758.html). *Radio Free Asia*. Retrieved 2026-04-30. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:0_7-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:0_7-1) Lang, Qian (2024-05-08). ["New rules let China's state security police check people's devices"](https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/security-police-check-devices-05082024130107.html). *[Radio Free Asia](/source/Radio_Free_Asia)*. Retrieved 2026-04-30. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** Mohamed (2024-03-05). ["Declassified Intelligence as a Foreign Policy Tool in Great Power Competition"](https://thesoufancenter.org/intelbrief-2024-march-5/). *[The Soufan Center](/source/The_Soufan_Center)*. Retrieved 2025-01-27. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** Wang, Ziyuan (2025-11-05). ["Data Flows Meet Great Power Politics: The Emerging Digital Security Dilemma Between China and the US"](https://www.cogitatiopress.com/politicsandgovernance/article/view/10234). *Politics and Governance*. **13** 10234. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.17645/pag.10234](https://doi.org/10.17645%2Fpag.10234). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [2183-2463](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/2183-2463). ## Notes 1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** 国家安全机关人民警察; Guójiā Ānquán Jīguān Rénmín Jǐngchá 1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** 国安警; Guó'ān ju v t e Ministry of State Security (MSS Headquarters: Yidongyuan, Xiyuan, Haidian District, Beijing, China) Organization Headquarters bureaus Confidential Communication International Intelligence Political & Economic Intelligence Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao Analysis and Dissemination Operational Guidance Counterespionage Counterespionage Investigation Internal Security External Security CICIR Social Investigation Bureau CICEC CNITSEC CNNVD Technical Reconnaissance Institute of Taiwan Studies Imaging Intelligence Enterprises United States Counterterrorism Municipal bureaus Beijing Detention Center Chongqing Shanghai Tianjin Provincial departments Anhui Fujian Gansu Guangdong Guizhou Hainan Hebei Heilongjiang Henan Hubei Hunan Jiangsu Jiangxi Jilin Liaoning Qinghai Shaanxi Shandong Shanxi Sichuan Yunnan Zhejiang Departments in autonomous regions Guangxi Inner Mongolia Ningxia Tibet Xinjiang XPCC Schools University of International Relations Hangzhou [zh] Jiangnan Social University Research institutes Nanjing Institute of Information Technology Front organizations Nanshan Temple Guanyin of Nanshan China Institute for Innovation and Development Strategy China National Technical Import and Export Corporation Grandview Institution Other components State Security Police Invitation to tea Ministers Ling Yun Jia Chunwang Xu Yongyue Geng Huichang Chen Wenqing Chen Yixin Major international operations Chinese intelligence activity abroad Cyberwarfare and China China's peaceful rise Notable works State Security Bulletin Journal of Jiangnan Social University Contemporary International Relations Activities by country Canada United Kingdom United States California Hawaii African Union --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [State Security Police](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Security_Police) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Security_Police?action=history)). 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