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Welcome to the world of supply chain poisoning. Go deep enough and you uncover local stores near defense companies and military bases which are targeted to con

Welcome to the world of supply chain poisoning. Go deep enough and you uncover local stores near defense companies and military bases which are targeted to contain modified inventory in the off chance someone buys it from said location. You might have some unused phone home chips in your coffee machine and not even know it.

RajT88 3y ago
I've heard some similarly wild shit on the other side - the market for illicit product designs. There are these boutique one-man contracting shops, which are closed most of the time in places like Shanghai and Shenzhen. They are contracted to do R&D for manufacturers, and deliver on firmware, product design, software, etc. but again are one-man shops which are closed much of the time. I am told this is how the pipeline of information works between state sponsored cyber attacks on big tech companies, and their Chinese competitors. Talking about Defense contractors, I've heard stories from govvies I know about asian dudes following them around the DC area, constantly catching them looking over their shoulders at coffee shops.
- JohnFen 3y ago
  > There are these boutique one-man contracting shops, which are closed most of the time in places like Shanghai and Shenzhen. That's not just a China thing, nor is it suspicious all by itself. I made a good living in the US doing exactly the same thing for years. The specific shops you're talking about may have been nefarious (I don't know), but the mere existence of private contractors is not inherently suspicious. They're pretty common.
  - RajT88 3y ago
    Maybe I did not say it plainly enough. These one man shops deliver to Chinese firms (Like Huawei) hardware designs, firmware source and also other misc. software. All in one go, on contract under the auspice of "outsourcing R&D". Wayyyy too much for one person to deliver on, especially for a small office which is mostly closed. I am not sure if I am mixing up anecdotes, but my source has mentioned that the materials provided often contain the same firmware bugs as a similar competitor's product does.

RajT88 3y ago

I've heard some similarly wild shit on the other side - the market for illicit product designs. There are these boutique one-man contracting shops, which are closed most of the time in places like Shanghai and Shenzhen. They are contracted to do R&D for manufacturers, and deliver on firmware, product design, software, etc. but again are one-man shops which are closed much of the time. I am told this is how the pipeline of information works between state sponsored cyber attacks on big tech companies, and their Chinese competitors. Talking about Defense contractors, I've heard stories from govvies I know about asian dudes following them around the DC area, constantly catching them looking over their shoulders at coffee shops.

JohnFen 3y ago
> There are these boutique one-man contracting shops, which are closed most of the time in places like Shanghai and Shenzhen. That's not just a China thing, nor is it suspicious all by itself. I made a good living in the US doing exactly the same thing for years. The specific shops you're talking about may have been nefarious (I don't know), but the mere existence of private contractors is not inherently suspicious. They're pretty common.
- RajT88 3y ago
  Maybe I did not say it plainly enough. These one man shops deliver to Chinese firms (Like Huawei) hardware designs, firmware source and also other misc. software. All in one go, on contract under the auspice of "outsourcing R&D". Wayyyy too much for one person to deliver on, especially for a small office which is mostly closed. I am not sure if I am mixing up anecdotes, but my source has mentioned that the materials provided often contain the same firmware bugs as a similar competitor's product does.