Congressional Report Claims ZTE, Huawei 'Cannot be Trusted'

Huawei and ZTE both manufacture telecom equipment. They are both quite good at it, but there is a catch: they're Chinese companies. And, according to Congress, that means they are a security risk. Or at least, that was the finding of a 11-month investigation. The report was to be published today, but Reuters managed to get a copy early.

According to the report, ZTE and Huawei refused to cooperate with investigations, didn't explain their relationship with the Chinese government, and were subject to "credible allegations" of "bribery, corruption, discriminatory behavior and copyright infringement."

Many details seem to have been held back for a classified report, but the situation is bad enough that the chairman of the Intelligence Committee went on '60 Minutes' to warn any US company away from working with either company. Which really is a shame, since Huawei makes a pretty great cellphone.

For their part, both Huawei and ZTE seem to take issue with the report, claiming that they have been unfairly criticized and excluded to give Western companies a chance. ZTE feels it shouldn't have even been part of the investigation, and Huawei is repeating the arguments it made a few weeks ago, in preparation for this verdict.

Whether the two companies have a point doesn't really matter. By releasing this report, the US government has managed to poison the well, as it were, and halt the slow advance these two companies have been making onto US soil. I wouldn't be surprised to see Huawei and ZTE become increasingly cut off from US consumers, who might be willing to overlook any murky ethical concerns for a good product.

You can read more at the originating source, Reuters.

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