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A former analyst with the National Security Agency said that China is positioning equipment in “strategic places” that could be used to disrupt U.S. commerce after rogue communication devices were found inside Chinese solar power inverters.
Rogue communication devices that were not in official product documents were found inside Chinese solar power inverters when they were examined by U.S. experts for possible security issues, two sources told Reuters.
The two sources said that the rogue power inverters have undocumented communication channels which could be used to circumvent firewalls remotely, which could have major consequences. These power inverters connect the solar panel to electic grids.
Rocky Cole, former intelligence analyst at the National Security Agency and co-founder of iVerify, told Fox News Digital it’s “very conceivable” that China is using these rogue power inverters to gain access to American infrastructure.
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“It very much fits into the model of China implanting hardware in American critical infrastructure for the purpose of planning cyberattacks against the United States in the event of, say, a conflict with Taiwan or something along those lines,” Cole said.
Chinese companies are mandated by law to assist China’s intelligence agencies when needed.
Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C. gave Fox News Digital the following statement:
“The goal of China’s pursuit of development is to enable its people to live a better life. We oppose the presumption of guilt under unclear facts, the generalization of the concept of national security, and the distortion and smear of China’s achievements in the field of energy infrastructure,” Pengyu said.
According to one of the sources, the undocumented communication devices, which include cellular radios, were found in batteries from multiple suppliers from China over the past nine months.
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Cole said this is just another example of China preparing for a possible conflict involving the U.S.
“There are communications devices in these really strategic places that you can imagine could theoretically be used to disrupt U.S. commerce in the event of some sort of conflict,” Cole said. “It’s difficult not to view Chinese-made hardware in the realm of critical infrastructure as a national security threat in my mind.”
“Any time that you have any time that there’s a supply chain outside the U.S. or U.S.-allied countries, that presents opportunities for what’s called in intelligence parlance, supply chain operation, which means intelligence operatives work with the manufacturers to implant backdoors in the hardware,” he added.
“Without strict oversight of supply chains, it becomes very difficult to certify with any confidence that your hardware doesn’t contain these backdoors implanted in supply chain operations. I think it’s critically important that American officials are aware of the risks posed by Chinese-made hardware as it relates to critical infrastructure.”
Reuters contributed to this report.
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