Industry news relating to Huawei and HiSilicon.

Link : The U.S. Senate today voted unanimously to pass the Secure and Trusted Telecommunications Networks Act. Written as a response to recent concerns around Chinese hardware manufacturers, the bill would ban purchase of telecom equipment from embattled Chinese manufactures like Huawei and ZTE. Huawei owns HiSilicon- HiSilicon is in nearly every Camera and NVR, but not the new G4 Line of Cameras!

Officials talking to the Wall Street Journal have claimed that Huawei can "covertly" access phone networks worldwide using backdoors meant for law enforcement. While manufacturers are often required to design their gear in a way that prevents them from gaining access without a carrier's permission, Huawei supposedly maintains that access without the carriers being any the wiser.

The White House said it planned to use American companies, including Dell, Microsoft, and ATT, to develop 5G infrastructure in the US. The plan is create a common 5G software standard that can operate 5G networks on any 5G equipment. It would reduce the important of 5G equipment, namely Huawei's equipment. Huawei is the biggest player globally in 5G equipment, but the US deems the company a national security threat due to its alleged ties to the Chinese government and fears that its technology can be used to spy on the US.

Russian security researcher Vladislav Yarmak has published today details about a backdoor mechanism he discovered in HiSilicon chips, used by millions of smart devices across the globe, such as security cameras, DVRs, NVRs, and others.

The U.S. Interior Department Signs No-Fly Order, Grounding All of Its Chinese-Made Drones. The U.S. Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt signed an order to ground over 800 drones, citing cybersecurity risks. Back in October, the Interior Department announced that it would soon ground Chinese manufactured drones as part of a review of its drone program. Drones involved in critical safety missions, like putting out wildfires, will still operate.