My Car Quest

December 11, 2024

Editorial: Chinese-made vehicles will be cheap but, oh, they could spy on us…

by Wallace Wyss –

In a story in the Detroit News by Grant Schwab he quotes the Biden administration saying it plans to investigate the national security risks posed by internet-connected vehicles from China, a probe that could result in a ban on Chinese vehicles in the United States.

What they are considering is a potential ban on connected vehicles The investigation is not guaranteed and would be a response to national security concerns, not economic competition.

However, in a statement accompanying the announcement, President Joe Biden repeatedly raised concerns about protecting the U.S. auto industry.

“China is determined to dominate the future of the auto market, including by using unfair practices. China’s policies could flood our market with its vehicles, posing risks to our national security. I’m not going to let that happen on my watch,” he said.

But now is the worry that they will not only vastly underprice American cars but each car could have the capacity to eavesdrop. Biden was quoted saying “Most cars these days are “connected” — they are like smartphones on wheels. These cars are connected to our phones, to navigation systems, to critical infrastructure, and to the companies that made them. Connected vehicles from China could collect sensitive data about our citizens and our infrastructure and send this data back to the People’s Republic of China.” Biden said.

It’s not only private phone calls, but text messages and navigation routes processed in the software in vehicles.

Ironically the Biden administration became aware of this danger when the Chinese suddenly imposed rules against American vehicles in China. The PRC looks at internet-connected vehicles as security threats and placed restrictions on U.S. EVs, near sensitive locations, like the airport in Beijing.

The investigation will be conducted by the Department of Commerce through its Bureau of Industry and Security. The department formally declared its intention to perform the investigation through an advance notice of proposed rulemaking.

Biden administration officials said there is no timeline for when the department will provide a specific proposal on potential limitations, or an outright ban, on Chinese vehicles. The agency will accept public comments for 60 days following its formal notice, after which it will review the comments and determine next steps.

Biden administration officials said this investigation would also focus on vehicles manufactured in China. They said vehicles available in the U.S. that are produced in China include the Buick Envision, Volvo EX30 and Polestar 2. Ford previously announced plans to build the Lincoln Nautilus in China.

A connected vehicle was described by the administration as “any automotive vehicle that integrates onboard networked hardware with automotive software systems to communicate via dedicated short-range communication, cellular telecommunications connectivity, satellite communication, or other wireless spectrum connectivity with any other network or device.”

LOOK AT DEALERSHIP LOCATIONS

I would also add that where dealerships are established for Chinese vehicles to be sold in the US is critical. Let’s say within 100 miles of Langley, VA where the CIA is headquartered. They could tempt the locals into buying a Chinese vehicle with a super low price—say under $20,000–and hope some work for the CIA.

I’ll describe a scenario. A CIA employee, late for work, remembers he didn’t send in to his boss the report due that morning on Dark Star (a stealth aircraft) deficiencies. He figures he will just email it from his car and it will still reach his boss’s desk in time. But the car, unbeknownst to him, has software to simultaneously send a copy to a Chinese intelligence official assigned to monitoring all his communications.

I had a personal incident showing how sloppy people can be with gum’mint secrets half a century ago when I visited someone in Virginia right outside DC and noticed on a coffee table a secret report on how some astronauts died on a launch craft. That was before the internet. Today you can bet, over in Beijing, there will be a person assigned to monitor the in-car messages sent by every CIA employee, not to mention to military agencies.

The White House further described its concern for such technology in a statement.

“New vulnerabilities and threats could arise with connected autos if a foreign government gained access to these vehicles’ systems or data. Connected vehicles collect large amounts of sensitive data on their drivers and passengers; regularly use their cameras and sensors to record detailed information on U.S. infrastructure; interact directly with critical infrastructure; and can be piloted or disabled remotely.”

The Chinese could get around the ban by building their cars in a manufacturing plant in Mexico but I would say the software monitors could be even built into those cars since the electronics will come from Red China. The US government should buy these cars at random and tear them down to see where the signals are being sent. If they find they are being sent to a satellite that is not of US origin, all those cars sold in the US should be banned and confiscated.

Let us know what you think in the Comments.

THE AUTHOR: Wallace Wyss served in the US Army as an arms expert.

Spy_Vs_Spy_

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Editorial: Chinese-made vehicles will be cheap but, oh, they could spy on us...
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Editorial: Chinese-made vehicles will be cheap but, oh, they could spy on us...
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New vulnerabilities and threats could arise with connected autos if a foreign government gained access to these vehicles’ systems or data.
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Comments

  1. Wallace, you’ve hit the problem. We already have enough challenges with human behavior creating “spillage” or with intent to disseminate intelligence and secrets. Already we look at the aggregated risk of pieces of information – which most people do not think about in their own lives – and look for ways to mitigate or prevent those risks.
    Most people do not realize that China already has a vast amount of eavesdropping technology embedded in the software, chips, etc. that they manufacture and ship around the world.It may seem innocuous – “I’ve got nothing to hide and my life is boring”, but the aggregation across a community, state, a generation, a populous, a country drive intelligence and shaping operations to manipulate and control the flow of information to and the perceptions of those groups.
    China – and Russia to an extent – is very effective at this. We’ve debated the risks of TikTok but there are MANY other avenues of approach and collection sued by our enemies, many with a long-term approach such as shaping the educational subjects, understanding and perceptions, and messaging of a populous to be more accepting and receptive to certain messaging.
    There are a lot of ways around the potential ban – I stress potential because we haven’t seen much real, useful action from this administration to protect our national security. In general, ALL connected cars are a major risk, regardless of where the technology is developed, built, or by whom. Cars have already been hacked. It’s a matter of time, motive, and perceive benefit before we start experiencing even worse risks or events.

  2. i own a Chinese made Chery J3 here in Australia, no spyware in it.

  3. Fred Johansen says

    The Chinese created, caused, and spread Covid in their attempt to corral the World. They need to be spanked, and banning their inferior products is just a start.

  4. Robert Feldman says

    They have been stealing our technology for decades. They were responsible sending Covid here. And, they are killing over 100,000 Americans per year with fentynal they send across the southern border. Why would we even allow their cars here?

  5. WALLACE WYSS says

    I left out the worry that some will steal secrets just to impress their friends or folks on the net like the National Guardsman whose job was to provide worldwide intelligence for combat support and homeland security. Jack Teixeira was granted a “top secret security clearance” in 2021, meaning he would have signed a “lifetime binding non-disclosure agreement” acknowledging that leaking protected information could result in criminal charges, according to the government.

  6. This is not uncommon (click the link to read the article):

    Former Google engineer indicted for stealing AI secrets to aid Chinese companies

  7. Now we got a new one

    CBS News says a U.S. soldier has been charged with selling military secrets to China

    ” An active duty Army soldier and intelligence analyst spent over a year selling sensitive military documents related to the U.S. defense of Taiwan, weapons systems, and missile defense systems to China, federal prosecutors alleged in an indictment unsealed Thursday and obtained by CBS News.

    Sergeant Korbein Schultz is accused of using his top secret security clearance to download classified U.S. government records at the behest of an unnamed individual who claimed to live in Hong Kong, allegedly amassing $42,000 in the process”

    His operative wanted what the U.S. plan would be if Taiwan came under military attack .plus details on the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS), hypersonic equipment, studies on the future development of U.S. military forces, and summaries of military drills and operations.

    Oher accounts said Sgt, Schulze spent some of the money on customizing his car. I wonder if part of it was improving its ability send internet messages? I’d like to know if his Chinee contact bugged his car.?..

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