Chinese companies apparently have a covert capability to remotely access communications technology sold to the United States and other Western countries and could "disable a country's telecommunications infrastructure before a military engagement," according to former and current intelligence sources.

The Chinese also have the ability to exploit networks "to enable China to continue to steal technology and trade secrets," according to the open source intelligence company Lignet, which is comprised of former U.S. intelligence analysts.

The issue centers on the Chinese firm Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd., which U.S. intelligence sources say has direct links to the Chinese government and the People's Liberation Army, or PLA. These sources assert that Huawei and other Chinese telecommunications firms such as ZTE Corp. have "electronic backdoors" to telecommunications technology sold to the U.S. and other countries.