U.S. labs find undocumented cellular radios in Chinese inverters and battery packs

OVERKILL

OVERKILL

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A rather eye-opening thread on twitter:


Cliff notes:
US Security Teams have torn down several different Chinese-sourced solar inverters and discovered cellular radios inside that allow the device to be remotely deactivated. This is not without precedent, as apparently, as noted in the thread:
1749515446344.webp


On the 15th of November, 2024, inverters were remotely deactivated due to a contract dispute.

Given the absolutely MASSIVE install base of Chinese inverters across the world, the amount of leverage being able to remotely deactivate these devices provides is staggering.
 
daves87rs said:
Not surprised at all. They are going to find them in quite a few things.

Build an iPhone in China? Okay.

Something that we need to depend on in our infrastructure? Very bad idea……
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I know a place where the chinese inverters are being hand over fist. If the grid companies can shut down your AC (but they only will on a really hot day when the grid is stretched), someone can shut down the grid for a couple days, and then step ff the boat.

But wait...there's more

https://thenightly.com.au/australia...-tony-burke-about-chinese-ev-risks-c-17846050
 
When the Russians stole new tractors from Ukraine, the manufacturer was able to brick them remotely. Sometimes having control works out well.

I'm surprised we never hear of vehicles that are delinquent in payment bricking. Probably because the delinquent person might then trash it in many ways.
 
FBI arrested a second Chinese national on charges of smuggling biological materials into the U.S. and lying to Federal Agents.

"This individual is Chengxuan Han, a citizen of the People’s Republic of China and a Ph.D. student in Wuhan, China. Han is the third PRC connected individual charged on similar allegations in recent days.

Han is alleged to have sent four packages to the U.S. from China containing a biological material related to round worms — addressed to individuals associated with a lab at the University of Michigan.

Upon arriving at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport on June 8, Han allegedly made false statements to federal officials regarding the packages she had previously mailed — and had erased her electronic device just days prior.

In a follow up interview with FBI and ICE HSI agents, Han admitted to sending the packages and lying about their contents.

This case is part of a broader effort from the FBI and our federal partners to heavily crack down on similar pathogeon smuggling operations, as the CCP works relentlessly to undermine America’s research institutions."
 
Shannow said:
I know a place where the chinese inverters are being hand over fist. If the grid companies can shut down your AC (but they only will on a really hot day when the grid is stretched), someone can shut down the grid for a couple days, and then step ff the boat.

But wait...there's more

https://thenightly.com.au/australia...-tony-burke-about-chinese-ev-risks-c-17846050
Click to expand...
Well this is fun (not that we didn't already know this, but to hear it spelled out):
“Chinese smart vehicles are equipped with hundreds or even thousands of sensors that collect real-time information on vehicle status, road conditions, and passenger behaviour. This data is often sent directly to Beijing,” said Tilla Hoja, an analyst with the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI).
The vehicle systems were connected to Chinese clouds to which they transmit data, added Mr Hoja.

“This clearly poses national security risks. It’s difficult to see how a federal minister can use a Chinese-made smart car without incurring these risks.”
Mobile apps or personal devices linked to those China-made EVs technically connected to China’s “smart city” platforms via cloud computing systems, allowing the misuse of data in ways that could expose personal privacy and sensitive information for exploitation, he added.
Click to expand...
 
buster said:
FBI arrested a second Chinese national on charges of smuggling biological materials into the U.S. and lying to Federal Agents.

"This individual is Chengxuan Han, a citizen of the People’s Republic of China and a Ph.D. student in Wuhan, China. Han is the third PRC connected individual charged on similar allegations in recent days.

Han is alleged to have sent four packages to the U.S. from China containing a biological material related to round worms — addressed to individuals associated with a lab at the University of Michigan.

Upon arriving at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport on June 8, Han allegedly made false statements to federal officials regarding the packages she had previously mailed — and had erased her electronic device just days prior.

In a follow up interview with FBI and ICE HSI agents, Han admitted to sending the packages and lying about their contents.

This case is part of a broader effort from the FBI and our federal partners to heavily crack down on similar pathogeon smuggling operations, as the CCP works relentlessly to undermine America’s research institutions."
Click to expand...
This biological crop thing scares me a lot. Controlling the food supply is pretty diabolical. Then again some of the crud put in our food by food companies is scary too. That has been happening for decades.
 
Shannow said:
That was a perfectly crafted virus...by global national entities...made the operators think that everything was AOK, while they oversped the equipment...amazing, and no remote control.
Click to expand...
Are you saying that Suxnet was pre-loaded before delivery?
I know that at least VAX mainframes (likely IBM 360/370 too) sold to 'unfriendlies' had hardware allowing for remote access. Nothing new really, backdoors in hardware and software and built-in trojans go back decades ago.
 
Probably reusing the same board across different platforms. Cellular would be the silliest method of spying if you have no direct physical access to the device.
 
dubber09 said:
Are you saying that Suxnet was pre-loaded before delivery?
I know that at least VAX mainframes (likely IBM 360/370 too) sold to 'unfriendlies' had hardware allowing for remote access. Nothing new really, backdoors in hardware and software and built-in trojans go back decades ago.
Click to expand...
We invented this, no surprise someone will try to use it against us.
 
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