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It’s hardly surprising that the US is going after Huawei. The US enjoys a commanding lead in technology globally. That overwhelming lead is threatened by a comp

It’s hardly surprising that the US is going after Huawei. The US enjoys a commanding lead in technology globally. That overwhelming lead is threatened by a company which is now a leader in 5G technology and becoming a global player. Naturally the US will try to protect its own companies, it’s very telling that they haven’t given evidence of any wrongdoing.

Retric 7y ago
Last thing I read was: ‘Hidden backdoors’ were found in Huawei equipment, reports Bloomberg. https://www.theverge.com/2019/4/30/18523701/huawei-vodafone-italy-security-backdoors-vulnerabilities-routers-core-network-wide-area-local https://www.theverge.com/2019/4/30/18523701/huawei-vodafone-... Was that disproven?
- oefrha 7y ago
  Reports Bloomberg... certainly gives me pause.
- diffeomorphism 7y ago
  > In an official statement, Huawei went on to call Bloomberg’s report “misleading” and said that the story “refers to a maintenance and diagnostic function, common across the industry, as well as vulnerabilities, which were corrected over seven years ago.” It added that “there is absolutely no truth in the suggestion that Huawei conceals backdoors in its equipment.” It was never proven to begin with. Like any good backdoor it "could simply have been a mistake" (deniability).
  - bigj0n 7y ago
    Quoting Huawei doesnt make for great evidence here
    - diffeomorphism 7y ago
      Quoting nobody to claim it was proven makes for even worse one.
      - rumanator 7y ago
        The quotes you personally selected actually admit that the technical aspects of the accusation are correct, but claim that the ability to exploit the gear to spy on their users was not intentional but instead a side-effect of the company's incompetence.
        DiogenesKynikos 7y ago
        Is it "technically correct" to call standard diagnostic software that most telecommunications manufacturers install on their gear (and which does not allow unauthorized access) a "backdoor"? Vodafone, the company that Bloomberg claims was targeted by these backdoors, publicly contradicted Bloomberg. They pointed out that the diagnostic software did not allow unauthorized access: > The 'backdoor' that Bloomberg refers to is Telnet, which is a protocol that is commonly used by many vendors in the industry for performing diagnostic functions. It would not have been accessible from the internet. > Bloomberg is incorrect in saying that this 'could have given Huawei unauthorised access to the carrier's fixed-line network in Italy'.[1] 1. https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48103430 https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48103430.
- tozeur 7y ago
  You’d be surprised the lengths governments go to for espionage.
- DiogenesKynikos 7y ago
  Bloomberg was wrong here. Huawei routers had Telnet installed on them, which is completely standard. Vodafone, the company that was supposedly targeted, disputed Bloomberg's characterization of standard diagnostic software as a "backdoor": > The 'backdoor' that Bloomberg refers to is Telnet, which is a protocol that is commonly used by many vendors in the industry for performing diagnostic functions. It would not have been accessible from the internet.[1] This is not the first time Bloomberg has made sensationalist claims about Chinese backdoors. This one fell apart with even the lightest of scrutiny. One wonders if the Bloomberg reporter even understood what Telnet is. 1. https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48103430 https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48103430
  - DataWorker 7y ago
    It sounds like a backdoors to me. Oops we forgot to not install telnet on all routers we sell is as close to an admission of guilt as one might hope for.
    - GhettoMaestro 7y ago
      Bullshit - you're talking out of your ass entirely. This is a case of a dumbass enabling a protocol during dev/build, and forgetting it is in the GA build. If I wanted super-secret way to get into boxes like this, it wouldn't be telnet. It would be a very specific port-knocking sequence (or single packet authorization). Why would I want others to use my backdoor by leaving it advertised to anyone with nmap? That's stupid shit.
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]
- mark_l_watson 7y ago
  I think that was BS. I read that Huawei was setting or has set up some sort of security labs in the U.K. and Germany. A quick web search found: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-telecoms-huawei-exclusive/exclusive-chinas-huawei-opens-up-to-german-scrutiny-ahead-of-5g-auctions-idUSKCN1MX1VB https://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-telecoms-huawei-e... I think the EU is playing this very smart because Huawei would not open its tech to security inspections without some pressure.
bronlund 7y ago
The only thing USA is leading in is snooping at people. And now they don’t like the competition.

Retric 7y ago

Last thing I read was: ‘Hidden backdoors’ were found in Huawei equipment, reports Bloomberg. https://www.theverge.com/2019/4/30/18523701/huawei-vodafone-italy-security-backdoors-vulnerabilities-routers-core-network-wide-area-local https://www.theverge.com/2019/4/30/18523701/huawei-vodafone-... Was that disproven?

oefrha 7y ago
Reports Bloomberg... certainly gives me pause.
diffeomorphism 7y ago
> In an official statement, Huawei went on to call Bloomberg’s report “misleading” and said that the story “refers to a maintenance and diagnostic function, common across the industry, as well as vulnerabilities, which were corrected over seven years ago.” It added that “there is absolutely no truth in the suggestion that Huawei conceals backdoors in its equipment.” It was never proven to begin with. Like any good backdoor it "could simply have been a mistake" (deniability).
- bigj0n 7y ago
  Quoting Huawei doesnt make for great evidence here
  - diffeomorphism 7y ago
    Quoting nobody to claim it was proven makes for even worse one.
    - rumanator 7y ago
      The quotes you personally selected actually admit that the technical aspects of the accusation are correct, but claim that the ability to exploit the gear to spy on their users was not intentional but instead a side-effect of the company's incompetence.
      - DiogenesKynikos 7y ago
        Is it "technically correct" to call standard diagnostic software that most telecommunications manufacturers install on their gear (and which does not allow unauthorized access) a "backdoor"? Vodafone, the company that Bloomberg claims was targeted by these backdoors, publicly contradicted Bloomberg. They pointed out that the diagnostic software did not allow unauthorized access: > The 'backdoor' that Bloomberg refers to is Telnet, which is a protocol that is commonly used by many vendors in the industry for performing diagnostic functions. It would not have been accessible from the internet. > Bloomberg is incorrect in saying that this 'could have given Huawei unauthorised access to the carrier's fixed-line network in Italy'.[1] 1. https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48103430 https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48103430.
tozeur 7y ago
You’d be surprised the lengths governments go to for espionage.
DiogenesKynikos 7y ago
Bloomberg was wrong here. Huawei routers had Telnet installed on them, which is completely standard. Vodafone, the company that was supposedly targeted, disputed Bloomberg's characterization of standard diagnostic software as a "backdoor": > The 'backdoor' that Bloomberg refers to is Telnet, which is a protocol that is commonly used by many vendors in the industry for performing diagnostic functions. It would not have been accessible from the internet.[1] This is not the first time Bloomberg has made sensationalist claims about Chinese backdoors. This one fell apart with even the lightest of scrutiny. One wonders if the Bloomberg reporter even understood what Telnet is. 1. https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48103430 https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48103430
- DataWorker 7y ago
  It sounds like a backdoors to me. Oops we forgot to not install telnet on all routers we sell is as close to an admission of guilt as one might hope for.
  - GhettoMaestro 7y ago
    Bullshit - you're talking out of your ass entirely. This is a case of a dumbass enabling a protocol during dev/build, and forgetting it is in the GA build. If I wanted super-secret way to get into boxes like this, it wouldn't be telnet. It would be a very specific port-knocking sequence (or single packet authorization). Why would I want others to use my backdoor by leaving it advertised to anyone with nmap? That's stupid shit.
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
mark_l_watson 7y ago
I think that was BS. I read that Huawei was setting or has set up some sort of security labs in the U.K. and Germany. A quick web search found: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-telecoms-huawei-exclusive/exclusive-chinas-huawei-opens-up-to-german-scrutiny-ahead-of-5g-auctions-idUSKCN1MX1VB https://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-telecoms-huawei-e... I think the EU is playing this very smart because Huawei would not open its tech to security inspections without some pressure.

bronlund 7y ago

The only thing USA is leading in is snooping at people. And now they don’t like the competition.