China will welcome the Year of the Dog with a renewed assault on illegal gambling activity, as well as the support services that enable this activity to thrive.

On Monday, China’s official state media service Xinhua quoted Ministry of Public Security deputy minister Huang Ming telling attendees at a national video conference that the country faced a new front in its ongoing war against illegal gambling activity.

Huang claimed rural areas of the country were coming under fresh attack from illegal gambling operators, including from unauthorized online gambling sites. Huang ordered police to target the protective “umbrellas” behind such activities, including networks of underground banks that help Chinese gamblers fund their betting activity.

As if China’s population hadn’t already gotten the message, Huang claimed gambling was a social harm that posed a threat to national security, and warned individuals involved in illegal gambling and those who obstruct police probes into illicit activity that they will be “harshly punished.”