PNN – With the possibility of Chinese engineers having access to important Pentagon information being raised, the US Secretary of Defense has ordered a two-week review of contracts with his country’s military institution.
According to the report of Pakistan News Network, citing Reuters, Microsoft announced that the Pentagon will stop using Chinese engineers after a report by the investigative news website ProPublica raised questions from a US senator (Tom Cotton) and led US Defense Secretary Pete Hegsett to order a two-week review of Pentagon contracts.
The report, detailing Microsoft’s use of Chinese engineers, opens a new chapter in the work on U.S. military cloud computing systems, which is being hired through subcontractors who have security clearances but often lack the technical skills to assess whether the work of Chinese engineers poses a cyber-security threat.
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Microsoft, a major US government contractor, claims its systems were compromised by Chinese and Russian hackers. The company told the investigative news outlet that it disclosed its practices to the US government during the licensing process.
Microsoft spokesman Frank Shaw announced yesterday that the company has changed how it supports US government customers in response to concerns raised earlier this week (local time) … to ensure that no engineering teams based in China provide technical assistance for services used by the Pentagon.
Earlier on Friday, Senator Tom Cotton, Republican of Arkansas, who chairs the House Intelligence Committee and is also a member of the Armed Services Committee, sent a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegsett regarding Microsoft’s reported practices.
The Republican senator had requested a list of contractors using Chinese personnel from the US military.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegsett announced in a video that he is launching a two-week review to ensure that engineers based in China are not working on any other cloud services contracts across the Pentagon.