A Chinese cyber association with ties to Beijing on Wednesday called for reviews of Intel products, claiming they pose national security risks.
In a blog posted on the Chinese social media platform WeChat, the Cybersecurity Association of China (CSAC) alleged that Intel’s products pose risks to China’s information infrastructure.
It also decried the U.S. chipmaker over issues involving Xinjiang and Taiwan and for cutting off chip supplies to China’s Huawei and ZTE.
The call followed the U.S. Commerce Department’s revocation of some export licenses in May, which had allowed companies such as Intel and Qualcomm to ship chips to Huawei.
It could trigger a security review from the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC).
Last year, the CAC conducted a seven-week review of U.S. memory chipmaker Micron’s products sold in China and said the products had failed to pass the review. This means China’s key information infrastructures are banned from using Micron’s products.
A similar security review on Intel products could negatively impact the company’s revenues, over a quarter of which came from China last year.
Intel’s shares were down by 2.7 percent in U.S. premarket trading on Wednesday amid a broad tech sell-off following a disappointing update from chip equipment maker ASML.
In the blog, the CSAC said Intel’s products contain many vulnerabilities. It also claimed that the products contained a backdoor created by the U.S. National Security Agency, posing risks to key information infrastructures in countries including China.
“The use of Intel’s products is a serious risk to national security,” the blog reads.
The CSAC also accused Intel of “constantly taking actions that harm China’s interests and threaten China’s national security.” The evidence it cited includes Intel’s exclusion of goods and services from Xinjiang from its supply chains, the company’s listing of Taiwan as a country in its financial reports, and its cutting off supplies to Huawei and ZTE.
Under U.S. law, goods and services from China’s Xinjiang region are presumed to have utilized Uyghur forced labor unless importers can prove otherwise. Many experts have deemed it impossible to conduct meaningful audits in China because of Beijing’s lack of transparency.
The United States has also banned companies from exporting advanced chips and chip-making tools to China in a bid to slow the communist regime’s modernization of its military.
“Relationships between the U.S. and China are fragile, and the more talk about restrictions on trade and tariffs, the more likely the other side will retaliate in a tit-for-tat situation,” said Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell.
In a statement emailed to The Epoch Times, an Intel spokesperson said: “Security has long been a top priority for Intel, and we go to great lengths to protect our customers.
“We look forward to working with the relevant officials on this matter to clarify any questions that may exist and demonstrate Intel’s deep commitment to the safety and security of our products.”
