Telecommunications Security Risk Insurance, Anyone?

Weary of DDOS attacks crashing your nation’s internet infrastructure – what if the telecommunications systems you are currently using is the very one spying on your nation’s top secret data?

By: Ringo Bones

This just in, a US Congressional Panel just issued a draft report warning that two Mainland Chinese telecommunications firms – Huawei and ZTE pose a security risk to the United States’ internet infrastructure. Given that every sovereign country with a beef on the Beijing government’s human rights and Tibet issue has been weary of DDOS attacks by the Beijing 50-Cent Cyber Army for a number of years now, imagine if your country’s telecommunications equipment supporting the internet infrastructure has really, really close ties with the Beijing government. Your government’s most closely guarded secrets could wind up as “Chinese Takeout” to the world’s leading terror groups like Al Qaeda or rogue states like Iran and Syria.

The US Congressional House Security Committee has genuine concerns when the two biggest Mainland Chinese telecommunications firms started making inroads into the United States because Huawei and ZTE were founded by a high-ranking veteran of the Mainland Chinese People’s Liberation Army back in 1987 and Huawei is the world’s second largest manufacturer of data routers. Imagine the Beijing government having direct access to a kill-switch running an enemy nation’s internet infrastructure never mind the very telecommunications hardware itself is doing the spying for the Beijing government.

The draft report of the US Congressional House Security Committee recommends that not only Huawei and ZTE be allowed mergers with US telecommunication firms currently under contract by the US Department of Defense or other very sensitive US government branches with “top secret” data vital to maintaining national security but also bans sale of telecommunications equipment manufactured by the two named Mainland Chinese telecommunications firms. Given that Mainland China excels at manufacturing cut-price electronic equipment, here’s an instance on where penny-pinching could have a very grave consequence. Does your telecommunications security risk insurance cover such eventuality?