China has instructed local companies to stop using cybersecurity software from about a dozen U.S. and Israeli firms, due to national security concerns.
In an exclusive report on January 14, Reuters cited an anonymous source saying that Chinese regulators were concerned that the software could collect and transmit confidential information abroad.
Among the U.S. companies affected are Broadcom-owned VMware, Palo Alto Networks, and Fortinet, while Check Point Software Technologies is listed among the Israeli firms, the sources said.
The move comes as the U.S. and China compete for technological supremacy, amid heightened trade and diplomatic tensions.
Beijing has been pushing to replace Western-made technology with domestic alternatives, focusing not only on semiconductors and artificial intelligence but also on computer equipment and software.
Earlier, on January 7, Beijing instructed some Chinese tech companies to halt orders for Nvidia’s H200 chips, as reported by The Information.
Nvidia found itself at the center of Washington and Beijing wrangles, as the U.S. tightened controls on exports of advanced AI semiconductors while Chinese firms aim to reduce dependence on U.S.-designed chips.
The directive to suspend orders came as the Chinese government considered whether and under what conditions to allow access to Nvidia’s high-performance chips.
Authorities sought to prevent local technology companies from rushing to stockpile U.S. chips ahead of a final decision.
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A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in the U.S., Liu Pengyu, said that China is committed to basing its national development on its own strengths.
He added that the country is also willing to maintain dialogue and cooperation with all parties to safeguard the stability of global industrial and supply chains.
“China is committed to basing its national development on its own strengths and is also willing to maintain dialogue and cooperation with all parties to safeguard the stability of global industrial and supply chains,” said Liu Pengyu.
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Trump Signs Law Blocking China-Based Access to Pentagon Cloud Systems
On the other hand, President Donald Trump signed into law a measure prohibiting anyone based in China and other adversarial countries from accessing the Pentagon’s cloud computing systems.
The ban, included in the $900 billion defense policy law, was enacted following a ProPublica investigation that revealed Microsoft had relied on China-based engineers to service Defense Department computer systems for nearly a decade.
The practice reportedly left some of the country’s most sensitive data vulnerable to hacking by one of its leading cyber adversaries.
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