The technical explanation of this is easy. Huawei builds telecom switches. These are complex and expensive computers that route phone calls placed strategically at local telephone exchanges. China has built in the ability to route your calls to not only the intended recipient but also to any place else they wish, without you knowing.
For example, their listening post in China or to a hard drive someplace where they can recall, transcribe and read your private conversations.
So if you are in any way important to China, if you have access to tech that they need, if you have contact with Chinese Americans, if you are a member of the media or anything else that might make you a target, Chinese intelligence services are likely listening in on your conversations – provided your calls go through one of these exchanges.
And of course, they could turn all of their devices into “bricks,” meaning shut down the equipment and the communications they control permanently. But that would be an extreme measure, only useful in war time.
President Trump knew this – “We don’t want their equipment in the United States because they spy on us,” Trump told Fox News. “And any country that uses it, we’re not going to do anything in terms of sharing intelligence.” Trump issued an executive order barring US companies from using information and communications technology from anyone considered a national security threat and declared a national emergency on the matter.
Two Chinese companies Huawei and ZTE, are known to be under the thumb of Chinese Intelligence. One might speculate with confidence that all Chinese companies are associated with Chinese Intelligence to one degree or another. But communications intelligence (COMINT) of the kind these companies can generate is priceless.
Unfortunately, over 200 local telecoms in the U.S. still use equipment from Huawei and ZTE and cannot afford to have it replaced, including rural wireless networks and providers of broadband internet and TV, a handful of universities and school districts and even city governments.
The FCC is saying it will require an additional $3 Billion to get rid of the remaining equipment from these manufacturers.
Some thoughts come to mind.
a) You never want to leave intelligence collection devices in place (unless you are planning to work them against their owners, which is not the case here).
b) The U.S. government should never have allowed this equipment into the country. EVERYONE in the intelligence community knows that the potential for spying is near 100% for this kind of equipment. Trump was the first to take this seriously.
c) Since the equipment was not banned originally, it is the USG’s responsibility to fix this problem.
Unfortunately, the U.S. is not the only country that has problems. Europe is riddled with this equipment, as is Asia and the third world. In fact, Huawei is the largest telecom equipment manufacturer in the world.
This puts China in a very powerful position.
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