Highlights
– UK intelligence officials are raising concerns over possible covert sabotage measures present in Chinese firm’s networking equipment
– Israel and the US have been accused in the past of altering electronics and telecommunications equipment to include eavesdropping measures
– Huawei will likely retain contract to continue supplying British telecom giant with networking equipment
Senior United Kingdom (UK) intelligence officials are raising concerns with cabinet level politicians over the country’s deployment of networking equipment made by the Chinese firm Huawei. The officials say the company is in collusion with the Beijing government and fear that an undetectable “kill switch” present in the company’s equipment could be flipped by the government causing widespread disruptions to the UK’s communications infrastructure should future relations with China deteriorate.
History of Cyber Espionage
The officials have good reason to fear the manufacture’s suspected close ties with Beijing. History shows that similar concerns have been raised in other countries in the past.
• In November 2008 a computer and hi-tech equipment buyer was executed in Iran after he confessed to allowing computer and electronic experts working for Israeli’s intelligence service, Mossad, to alter equipment he had purchased for the country’s defense industry and nuclear program while traveling abroad (Previous Report). Surveillance experts stated that the altered equipment allowed Israel to monitor the computer systems and communications devices bugged by engineers and also gave Israel the option of slowing down Iran’s weapons development or sabotaging it altogether.
• In 2000 Comverse Infosys – a producer of spying, surveillance and interception products installed in global telecommunication networks, financial institutions, customer service centers and other contact centers worldwide – was accused of spying for the Israeli government via backdoors in its wiretapping equipment supplied to United States (US) law enforcement agencies.
• Similar allegations have been lodged against the US’s National Security Agency (NSA). In the 1990s reports began to emerge that the agency had allegedly rigged the products of Swiss encryption firm Crypto AG for decades. The agency was reportedly able to effortlessly decode secret diplomatic and military messages of countries who bought the company’s products.
As reports of high-tech espionage and theft continue to emerge, manufacturers of electronics, computers, and networking equipment will find it more difficult to sell their equipment to foreign governments and corporations – two lucrative business sectors.
Huawei has already felt the effects over cyber-security concerns of its products in other countries. The company’s efforts to become a large player in India’s growing networking equipment market has been stymied by concerns put forth by India’s media outlets that granting contracts to the Chinese firm would be a security risk.
Company’s Alleged Connections With Beijing
Huawei’s alleged ties to the Chinese government is what concerns British intelligence officials most. The officials point to the company’s unusual private ownership structure and shadowy accounting practices as evidence of its alleged government ties. The firm’s founder, a former People’s Liberation Army (PLA) technology research chief, has also been cited as a cause for concern.
Despite these allegations, the company has stated that it has no financial or research links to the Chinese military or government. It contends it is a “100 percent privately held global company owned entirely by its employees.”
Company Will Likely Keep British Telecom Contract
In 2005 Huawei competed for the contract to upgrade the UK telecommunications giant BT Group’s 21st Century Network (21 CN). Huawei’s bid beat the bid tendered by British rival Marconi giving the company a lucrative multi-billion-pound deal. Not wanting to lose this contract, Huawei has stated that it is “open and willing to engage with relevant authorities to address their security concern.” According to a source within the UK broadband sector, BT Group has conducted an extensive and “industry leading” security investigation of its equipment and was unable to find any security issues.
This comes as no surprise to some security researchers and intelligence officials who state that no program of testing could guarantee security from a remote attack based on covert vulnerabilities.
While the debate is likely to continue around Whitehall, Huawei will more than likely keep providing its networking equipment to Britain’s BT Group and other large telecom providers helping the company to continue to capitalize on its sales of more than $23 billion in 2008.
