Authorities are concerned that Huawei ( HWT.UL ) could receive sensitive data about military exercises and the readiness status of bases and personnel through the equipment, one of the people said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation is confidential and involves National security. The previously undisclosed investigation was launched by the Commerce Department shortly after Joe Biden took office early last year, the sources said, following the implementation of rules to shape a May 2019 executive order that gave the agency investigative authority. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register The agency called Huawei in April 2021 to learn the company’s policy on sharing data with foreign parties that its equipment could capture from cellphones, including messages and geo-location data, according to the 10-page document that saw Reuters. The Commerce Department said it could not “confirm or deny ongoing investigations.” He added that: “protecting the safety and security of US individuals from malicious intelligence collection is vital to protecting our economy and national security.” Huawei did not respond to a request for comment. The company has vehemently denied the US government’s claims that it could be spying on US customers and that it poses a national security threat. The Chinese embassy in Washington did not respond to the specific allegations. In an emailed statement, it said: “The US government is abusing the concept of national security and state power to crack down on Huawei and other Chinese telecommunications companies without providing any solid evidence that they pose a threat to US security and other countries. .” Reuters was unable to specify what action the agency might take against Huawei. Eight current and former US government officials said the investigation reflected lingering national security concerns about the company, which has already been hit by a series of US restrictions in recent years. For a timeline on the US government’s trade restrictions on Huawei, click https://graphics.reuters.com/USA-CHINA/HUAWEI-TIMELINE/zgvomxwlgvd/ If the Commerce Department deems Huawei a national security threat, it could go beyond existing restrictions imposed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the US telecommunications regulator. Using broad new powers created by the Trump administration, the agency could ban all U.S. business with Huawei, requiring U.S. telecom companies that still rely on its equipment to quickly remove it or face fines or other penalties , several lawyers, academics and former officials told Reuters in an interview. The FCC declined to comment.
US-CHINA TECHNOLOGICAL WAR
Huawei has long been the subject of US government allegations that it may be spying on US customers, although authorities in Washington have released little evidence. The company denies the allegations. “If Chinese companies like Huawei have unrestricted access to our telecommunications infrastructure, they could collect any of your information that crosses their devices or networks,” FBI Director Christopher Wray warned in a 2020 speech. Even worse: They would have no choice but to hand it over to the Chinese government if asked.” Reuters was unable to determine whether Huawei’s equipment is capable of collecting this type of sensitive information and providing it to China. “If you can stick a receiver on a (cell phone) tower, you can collect signals and that means you can get information. No intelligence agency would miss an opportunity like that,” said Jim Lewis, a technology and cybersecurity specialist at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington-based think tank. One move to address the perceived threat was a 2019 law and related rules that barred US companies from using federal subsidies to buy telecommunications equipment from Huawei. It also directed the FCC to compel US carriers that receive federal subsidies to purge their networks of Huawei equipment in exchange for compensation. However, the so-called “rip and replace” deadline for the complete removal and destruction of Huawei’s equipment will not begin until mid-2023 at the earliest, with additional opportunities for companies to seek extensions. And refunds will only reach 40% of the total requested for now.
TOWERS NEAR PYRAMIDS SILO
Cell towers equipped with Huawei equipment located near sensitive military and intelligence sites have become of particular interest to US authorities, according to the two sources and an FCC commissioner. Brendan Carr, one of the FCC’s five commissioners, said cellphone towers around Montana’s Malmstrom Air Force Base — one of three that oversee missile fields in the United States — were powered by Huawei technology. In an interview this week, he told Reuters there was a risk that smartphone data obtained by Huawei could reveal troop movements near the sites: “There is a very real concern that some of this technology could be used as an early warning system if it happens something like that. be, God forbid, an ICBM missile strike.’ Reuters was unable to determine the exact location or scope of Huawei’s equipment operating near military installations. People interviewed by Reuters pointed to at least two other possible cases in Nebraska and Wyoming. Crystal Rhoades, a commissioner at the Nebraska Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, has highlighted to the media the danger posed by the proximity of Viaero-owned cell towers to intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) silos in the western part of the state. ICBMs carry nuclear warheads to targets thousands of miles away and are stored in underground silos near military bases. Nebraska’s cell towers are near a missile range overseen by FE Warren Air Force Base in neighboring Wyoming. Viaero provides mobile and wireless broadband services to approximately 110,000 customers in the region. In a 2018 filing with the FCC opposing the Commission’s efforts to limit Huawei’s expansion, it said that about 80 percent of its equipment was manufactured by the Chinese company. That equipment could potentially allow Huawei to gather sensitive information about locations, Rhoades told Reuters in June. “A hostile state could potentially see when things are online, when things are offline, the level of security, how many people are on duty in any building where there are really dangerous and sophisticated weapons,” Rhoades said. Rhoades said in July that she had not been informed of Viaero’s rip-and-replace efforts for more than two years, despite requesting updated information from the company in recent weeks. At the time of last contact, the company said it would not begin removal efforts until the FCC money was available. The FCC notified the companies on Monday how much of their funding requests it may reimburse. Viaero did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Huawei also declined to comment. In Wyoming, then-CEO of rural Union Wireless, John Woody, told Reuters in a 2018 interview that the company’s coverage area included ICBM silos near FE Warren Air Force Base and that its equipment included Huawei switches, routers and cell locations. Last month, Eric Woody, John’s son and acting CEO, said that “virtually all of the Huawei Gear Union bought remains on our network.” He declined to say whether the towers near the sensitive military sites contain Huawei equipment. FE Warren Air Force Base referred comment on Huawei equipment to the Pentagon. The United States Strategic Command, which is responsible for nuclear operations, said in a statement to Reuters: “We maintain constant awareness of activities near our facilities and installations.” He noted that “any concerns are across the board,” but declined to elaborate on those concerns.
NEW POWERS AGAINST EXTERNAL OPPONENTS
Rick Schofield, a former Justice Department official in the national security division who looked into the telecom transactions, said the Commerce Department’s investigation could add extra bite to the FCC’s crackdown, but there is nothing new in targeting Huawei. “The U.S. government’s concerns about Huawei are well known, so any information technology or communications company that continues to use Huawei products runs the risk of being hit by the U.S. government,” said Sofield, who represents U.S. and foreign companies that face US national security reviews. . He said he has not worked for Huawei. The Commerce Department is using an authority granted to it in 2019 that allows it to ban or restrict transactions between U.S. companies and internet, telecommunications and technology companies from “foreign adversary” countries, including Russia and China, according to the executive order and the relevant rules. The two sources familiar with the Huawei investigation and a former government official said Huawei was one of the first cases in the Biden administration to use the new powers, reported to Commerce in early 2021 by the Justice Department. The Justice Department referred Reuters’ requests for comment to Commerce. The subpoena is dated April 13, 2021, the same day Commerce announced a document request was sent to an unnamed Chinese company under the new powers. It gives Huawei 30 days to provide seven years of records identifying Huawei’s business dealings and relationships with foreign entities located outside the United States, including foreign government agencies or parties, that are accessed or shared in any capacity in the U.S. P.A. user data collected by Huawei.” Noting that “the focus of this investigation is the provision of mobile network and telecommunications equipment…by Huawei to the United States,” it also asks Huawei for a complete list of “all types of equipment sold” to “any…
