US urges American firms to shun Chinese data service companies

The advisory was issued as the Trump administration, in its last weeks, has imposed further penalties on Chinese companies amid continuing deterioration in relations between the two countries. China said that it would “firmly safeguard our security, sovereignty and development interests.”

The Department of Homeland Security warned US firms against using data services and equipment from firms linked to China because of cyber security and other risks.

President Donald Trump has downplayed the severity of a massive hacking operation, that top American officials have blamed on Russia, and suggested that China might have been behind it. (REUTERS)

“For too long, US networks and data have been exposed to cyber threats based in China which are using that data to give Chinese firms an unfair competitive advantage in the global marketplace,” Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf said in a letter with a lengthy advisory released on Tuesday night.

“Practices that give the PRC government unauthorized access to sensitive data – both personal and proprietary – puts the US economy and businesses at direct risk for exploitation. We urge businesses to exercise caution before entering into any agreement with a PRC-linked firm,” Wolf added.

The advisory was issued as the Trump administration, in its last weeks, has imposed further penalties on Chinese companies amid continuing deterioration in relations between the two countries. It also comes as US government agencies and companies are still trying to assess the damage from a massive hacking operation that top American officials have blamed on Russia.

President Donald Trump, however, has downplayed the severity of the assault and suggested that China might have been behind it.

“The PRC’s data collection actions result in numerous risks to US businesses and customers, including: the theft of trade secrets, of intellectual property, and of other confidential business information,” the advisory’s authors wrote.

China said on Wednesday that it would “firmly safeguard our security, sovereignty and development interests.”

“Containment and oppression will not stop China growing strong,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told a briefing, “which will only provoke more contradictions between the two sides and will only make the Chinese people more determined in building a stronger China.”