TAIPEI (Taiwan News) -- There are about 5,000 spies collecting intelligence for the Chinese government in Taiwan, according to an official from the National Security Agency.

The infiltration of these spies is not limited to the military, but also includes the country's civilian institutions, "the infiltration of spies into the government is just as prevalent as the military," said a security official to Liberty Times on the condition of anonymity.

Taiwanese authorities have discovered 60 cases of espionage since 2002, though the official emphasized that these were only the cases that have been made known to the public, the actual number of operations is much higher.

Before Ma Ying-jeou opened the "Three Links" of postal, transportation, and trade ties with China in 2009, there had been 18 cases reported, however, after cross-strait exchanges increased, so have spying incidents, with 42 being reported in the eight years since.

Of those 60 cases, 90 percent involved spying on the military, however the official said that the number of cases in the government is probably a lot higher, but they are not being reported due to a lack of the ability to detect such intrusions.

The official said that the spies are targeting government administrative offices to obtain information on diplomatic communications, cross-strait policies, and technology. He mentioned the case of Zhou Hongxu (周泓旭), a Chinese citizen who had been studying in Taiwan and was arrested last week for allegedly collecting sensitive information, as an example of such espionage.

In addition, the official mentioned that the Chinese government is looking to influence Aboriginal township authorities and to recruit Aborigines to serve as assets or agents.

The official expressed his concern that public servants do not have a sense of urgency about the problem and there are not sufficient mechanisms in place to prevent such infiltration.