Sunday, October 24, 2010

Why Wiretap When You Can buy the Phone Company?

A proposed deal between Sprint Nextel, Cricket and two Chinese telecom companies has raised a few eyebrows, with some U.S. senators concerned about security.

The Hill reports a bipartisan group of legislators wrote a letter seeking reassurance about the deal from Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski.

The letter, signed by Susan Collins (R-Maine), Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), contends the two Chinese companies, ZTE Corporation and Huawei, have ties to the Chinese military and are financed by the Chinese government.

The letter raised the specter of the Chinese government or military using the companies to spy on American communications. (more)