Huawei in hot water after users in US told not to use its products

The United States’ citizens have been warned by intelligence agencies to stop using the leading Chinese smartphone manufacturer Huawei’s products as they pose a threat to the national security.

The decision was passed by six top intelligence agencies including FBI, CIA, NSA and the director of national intelligence, during a Senate Intelligence Committee. The citizens were warned to avoid using Huawei and ZTE’s phones and gadgets as it is believed that the Chinese government is spying on them through these products that are ultimately a threat for the US national security. The US intelligence agencies have also described Chinese products as ‘effectively an arm of the Chinese Government’.

According to The Verge, in order to make it to the US market, the company decided to launch its new Mate 10 Pro in the country by partnering with AT&T, however, the government pressure was successful in pulling off the deal in the last minutes. The intelligence agencies of US have also come into action against these Chinese companies. A US congressman also suggested the bill to ban government employees from using Huawei or ZTE’s phones.

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FBI director Chris Wray mentioned, “The government was deeply concerned about the risks of allowing any company or entity that is beholden to foreign governments that don’t share our values to gain positions of power inside our telecommunications networks. It provides the capacity to maliciously modify or steal information. And it provides the capacity to conduct undetected espionage.”

CNBC reported, a spokesperson of Huawei clarified the company said, “Huawei is aware of a range of US government activities seemingly aimed at inhibiting Huawei’s business in the US market. Huawei is trusted by governments and customers in 170 countries worldwide and poses no greater cyber security risk than any ICT vendor, sharing as we do common global supply chains and production capabilities.”

Huawei has successfully marked its place as the world’s third largest smartphone manufacturer after tech giants Apple and Samsung. For a month, Huawei even outdid Apple in smartphone shipments last year.