Because of worries that China could spy on the United States and collect information about American military sites and ballistic missile silos through cell towers outfitted with Huawei’s technology, President Joe Biden’s administration is looking into the Chinese technology company Huawei.
According to two people with knowledge of the matter who spoke with Reuters, officials think that China may obtain vital information about the U.S. military by using the firm’s equipment.
The Commerce Department subpoenaed Huawei in April of last year to find out if the company would share data it gathered from mobile devices with foreign organizations. The probe was launched in early 2021, just after Biden was inaugurated in as president. Messages and geolocation data are among the data that Huawei can intercept, according to a 10-page document examined by Reuters.
The government stated that “protecting U.S. people’ safety and security against malicious information collection is critical to preserving our economy and national security” and declined to “confirm or deny ongoing investigations.”
The Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C. responded to inquiries about Huawei by issuing the following statement: “The U.S. government abuses the concept of national security and state power to go to great lengths to suppress Huawei and other Chinese telecommunications companies without providing any solid proof that they constitute a security threat to the U.S. and other countries.”
The location of Huawei-equipped mobile towers near military and intelligence facilities has drawn the attention of two sources and one FCC commissioner.
Concerning Huawei-equipped cell towers close to Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana, FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr issued a warning.
He told Reuters that there was a “very real risk” that some of that equipment would be utilized as an early warning system in the event of, God forbid, an ICBM missile strike.
Crystal Rhoades, a telecommunications commissioner in Nebraska, had similar warnings about cell phone towers near intercontinental ballistic missile silos in her state.
“An enemy state could potentially see when things are online, when things are offline, the level of security, how many people are on duty in any given building where there are really dangerous and sophisticated weapons,” Rhoades said.
Former Department of Justice official Rick Sofield — who worked in the national security division — said the latest investigation into Huawei is part of “widely known” U.S. national security concerns.
“The U.S. government’s concerns regarding Huawei are widely known so any information or communications technology company that continues to use Huawei products is assuming the risk that the U.S. government will come knocking,” said Sofield, who now works for U.S. and foreign companies dealing with national security reviews.
FBI Director Christopher Wray previously warned that Chinese tech companies like Huawei could be used by the Chinese Communist Party to spy on the U.S.
“If Chinese companies like Huawei are given unfettered access to our telecommunications infrastructure, they could collect any of your information that traverses their devices or networks,” Wray warned during a 2020 speech. “Worse still: They’d have no choice but to hand it over to the Chinese government, if asked.”
Last year, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) designated five Chinese technology firms, including Huawei, as national security threats to the U.S., affirming President Donald Trump’s administration’s earlier designation in June 2020.