U.S. officials seeking to convince allies not to use Huawei in their 5G networks are alerting a security flaw that allows the Chinese government-backed telecommunications giant to purloin sensitive information secretly.
The United States has pursued an aggressive campaign to block allies from using Huawei in their 5G network plans, arguing that the company’s close ties to the Chinese government pose a national security risk. The U.S. has lobbied its intelligence-sharing partners most aggressively, including Five Eyes members the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.
U.S. intelligence officials say Huawei can access wireless networks globally through so-called “back doors” used by law enforcement agencies, according to a new report. They claim that Huawei has been able to access sensitive information transmitted through the telecommunications systems that the company sells without carriers’ knowledge. Such information can typically be reached only by law enforcement or other authorized persons with the permission of a carrier.
Huawei has been able to do this for more than 10 years, U.S. officials told the Wall Street Journal, declining to say whether they had observed the company using its access.
“We have evidence that Huawei has the capability to access sensitive and personal information in systems it maintains and sells around the world,” said national security adviser Robert O’Brien.
Britain, a key U.S. ally, has resisted White House pressure to exclude Huawei from its 5G plans, announcing last month that it would include the Chinese company in its efforts to build a competitive high-speed wireless network. On Tuesday, British officials said the information they received from the U.S. was known to them and had been considered in their analysis.
“The freedom-loving world can’t sit back and let surveillance-state communists infect our infrastructure,” said Republican Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska. “Trusted tech comes from trusted suppliers, and Huawei is the Chinese Communist Party’s puppet. Our current and future allies need to think very carefully before they get into bed with the CCP.”
Huawei has denied claims that its technology could be used to spy on foreign countries and asserts no link with China’s own intelligence agencies.
Germany backtracked on a decision to include Huawei in its 5G plans soon after announcing it would move ahead with the plans, following a mass revolt of German lawmakers in December.
In January, the German government said it had evidence Huawei was cooperating with Chinese security agencies, information the foreign ministry said was tantamount to a “smoking gun.” The details, German officials said, had been shared with them by the U.S.
