Trusted Research Newsletter

October 2026

Welcome back after the summer to the October edition of the Trusted Research Newsletter.

MI5 Research Security Alert

On 30 September 2026 MI5 issued an espionage alert concerning the China General Technology Research Institute (CGTRI). MI5 assessed that CGTRI has links to China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) and has funded UK academic research in areas including artificial intelligence and cybersecurity. UK institutions are expected to take reasonable steps to review their exposure to CGTRI and, where necessary, avoid or end current and future partnerships to comply with the National Security Act 2023.

Other names associated with CGTRI and should be considered connected to them include China Academy of General Technology (CAGT) and China General Technology Group (CGTG) or Genertec.

If you have any concerns about this, please do not hesitate to contact the RC&G team on researchcompliance@warwick.ac.uk

Defence Universities Alliance

Warwick has recently become a member of the Defence Universities Alliance (DUA), a strategic partnership between UK universities, the Ministry of Defence, and the wider defence and national security sectors. Founding members will work to shape the alliance, its governance and agenda. The alliance has three core aims:

Advance defence and national security-related research and development
Build the high-level skills and careers the sector needs
Deepen collaboration across government, academia and industry.

Whilst the kind of work Warwick undertakes in the defence space has not changed, it is likely that the volume of work with defence and security partners will grow in the coming years. You can find a link to frequently asked questions about the DUA here.

Research Security Training Updates

The start of a new academic year is always a good time to reflect upon and refresh our Research Security training offerings. We can offer training on the following topics:

Trusted Research Overview – a 1-hour session covering the main topics to provide awareness, suited for all research active staff;
Export controls & export licence training – a session that gets into the detail of export control measures, best suited for research active staff working within controlled areas and technical staff who support these areas;
Research Security for PGRs – a 45-minute session covering the main topics for PhD/PG researchers;
Travel Guidance – informal advice about international travel for research purposes, usually supported by HERSA e-training module. This is suitable for any research active staff travelling overseas;
National Security & Investment Act – covered briefly in the Trusted Research Overview and can be provided as a longer session, suitable for researchers working with the 17 sensitive areas;
Foreign Influence Registration Scheme - covered briefly in the Trusted Research Overview and can be provided as a longer session, suitable for all researchers;
Human Tissue Act and Nagoya Protocol – approx. 30 minutes each, suitable for researchers working with human and non-human biological samples;
Trusted Research Master – an escape room-style game designed to raise awareness of export control and international travel risks.

RG&C Reminders