Indiana University Professor Under Investigation for Undisclosed Chinese Research Funding

2025-04-02
Indiana University Professor Under Investigation for Undisclosed Chinese Research Funding

Indiana University (IU) data privacy professor Xiaofeng Wang and his wife are under investigation for allegedly failing to disclose research funding received from China. The university began reviewing whether Wang received unreported funding months before the FBI raided two of the couple’s homes last week. A statement, purportedly written by a long-time collaborator, reveals IU contacted Wang in December about a 2017-2018 Chinese grant listing him as a researcher. The statement alleges IU was concerned Wang failed to properly disclose the funding to the university and in US federal grant applications. While Wang claims to have explained the situation, the investigation continues. The allegations involve research misconduct, including failure to properly disclose the principal investigator and not fully listing co-authors. Wang regularly collaborated with researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Institute of Information Engineering, but his publications show his primary funding came from US government agencies and corporations. No evidence currently suggests impropriety in the collaborations.