Why Congress may have just boosted China’s cybersecurity
Congressional negotiators reconciling the annual defense authorization act decided not to reinstate penalties on Chinese cellphone company ZTE, despite criticism that the company is a potential conduit for cyber espionage.
It is a victory for the Trump administration, who urged Congress not to impose harsh penalties on ZTE that would have crippled the company amid trade negotiations with Beijing. But the decision could also endanger national security, according to intelligence officials and lawmakers.
A 2012 House intelligence report warned that Chinese telecommunications products like ZTE should be viewed with suspicion. “Huawei and ZTE cannot be trusted to be free of foreign-state influence and thus pose a security threat to the United States and to our systems,” the report said.
