Sunday, May 18, 2025

 

DIGITAL LIFE


Huawei’s HarmonyOS could be yet another tool for hidden spying by China’s communist regime

The technological tension between the United States and China appears to be entering a new chapter. This time, the focus is on Huawei’s operating system, HarmonyOS, with US lawmakers urging the country’s government and its allies to block its global expansion. The main concern? The possibility that the Chinese government could use the system for espionage purposes.

According to information released by Nikkei Asia, two prominent US lawmakers, John Moolenaar and Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi, who are members of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, have reportedly sent a letter to senior US administration officials. The goal is clear: to work together with allied nations to prevent the global spread of Huawei’s HarmonyOS.

Following the restrictions imposed on Huawei’s Ascend artificial intelligence processors, US lawmakers now appear to view Chinese-made operating systems as a significant threat to US national security. The letter expresses these concerns unequivocally.

“Given the serious geopolitical and national security implications associated with operating systems from foreign adversaries, it is critical that HarmonyOS be closely scrutinized and that we work with our allies and partners to prevent it from being embedded in devices around the world,” the letter reads.

Sources indicate that the letter was sent last Friday to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and Brendan Carr, chairman of the FCC (Federal Communications Commission).

Lawmakers’ concerns are not limited to the use of HarmonyOS on smartphones and tablets. Huawei has been expanding its operating system to a wide range of devices, including personal computers (PCs), vehicles and various smart devices. This ubiquity is seen as a potential vector for espionage activities by China.

The authors of the letter point out that HarmonyOS could, in future updates, incorporate tools dedicated to data collection. They further argue that Huawei, by complying with Chinese laws, supports, assists, and cooperates with China’s intelligence efforts. As a result, products equipped with HarmonyOS could be used for cyber exploitation, potentially leading to a scenario of Chinese-imposed digital authoritarianism. The letter emphasizes the need for a thorough review: “The United States should fully examine the HarmonyOS architecture and codebase and ensure that our allies and partners around the world are aware of Huawei’s, and by extension the Chinese Communist Party’s, control over HarmonyOS.” 

To mitigate these risks, the lawmakers suggest that the U.S. government actively encourage its international partners to prefer operating systems that are considered secure and trustworthy over alternatives considered risky, such as HarmonyOS. This new crackdown on Chinese operating systems comes on the heels of tighter regulations already imposed on Huawei’s Ascend AI processors.

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