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Nvidia's Nosy Neighbors: Huawei's Futurewei Under Fire for Alleged Espionage
This is your Silicon Siege: China's Tech Offensive podcast.
Hey everyone, Ting here—your guide through the fast-moving, sometimes shadowy world of Chinese cyber operations, where geopolitics meets keystrokes. Let’s dive right in: if you think Silicon Valley is just about avocado toast and self-driving cars, think again. The past two weeks have been a masterclass in high-stakes digital chess, with Beijing’s players making some bold moves.
First, let’s talk TA415, the group that’s been making headlines and giving Western cyber defenders headaches. According to Proofpoint, TA415—also known as APT41 and Brass Typhoon—has been on a tear, targeting not just your average corporate network, but the very heart of the U.S.-China tech rivalry. My sources tell me TA415 is a Chengdu-based outfit, allegedly working for China’s Ministry of State Security, and they’re not shy about it. Between March and June 2025, they went after Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturers, designers, and supply chain companies with a mix of spear-phishing and custom malware like Cobalt Strike and the Voldemort backdoor. The game? Disrupt, distract, and—of course—steal.
But here’s the twist: this month, TA415 shifted gears, going after U.S. think tanks, government agencies, and academics focused on trade and economic policy. Imagine getting an email masquerading as Congressman John Moolenaar, Chair of the Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the U.S. and the CCP, inviting you to a fake closed-door briefing on U.S.-China affairs. That’s exactly what happened to some of the sharpest minds in Washington. The payload? A cleverly disguised Visual Studio Code Remote Tunnel, giving hackers persistent access without traditional malware. And—get this—they’re routing command and control through Google Sheets, Google Calendar, and VS Code, blending right in with normal, boring office traffic. Proofpoint says this is a classic case of “living off the land,” where the attackers use trusted, everyday tools to avoid detection.
Meanwhile, over in Santa Clara, California, things were getting cozy—and suspicious—between Nvidia and Futurewei, Huawei’s U.S. research arm. For nearly a decade, Futurewei held the prime lease on three buildings at Nvidia’s headquarters, right in the thick of American semiconductor and AI innovation. According to a bipartisan letter from the House Select Committee on China, led by John Moolenaar and Raja Krishnamoorthi, this co-location gave Futurewei “unprecedented access” to sensitive research and hardware. The lawmakers’ letter, reported by Bloomberg, referenced a 2018 incident where Futurewei employees allegedly used fake U.S. company names to infiltrate a Facebook telecom summit after Huawei was barred. The committee is now demanding all records and internal communications from Futurewei, with a deadline of September 28, to see if this was just an innocent real estate arrangement or something more, ahem, strategic.
Now, let’s not forget the human side of this drama: Jesse Hong, a former Futurewei employee, sued the company in 2018, accusing Huawei of using Futurewei as a “corporate spy tool.” The lawsuit, settled in 2019, claimed that Futurewei directed employees to gather confidential information from U.S. startups under the guise of consulting work. Combine that with the physical proximity to Nvidia, and you’ve got the ingredients for a perfect storm of intellectual property risk.
What’s the big-picture takeaway? According to industry experts, these operations are not one-offs. They’re part of a broader, persistent campaign of economic espionage designed to erode America’s technological edge. Former FBI Director Christopher Wray has said China’s hacking program is the largest in the world, targeting not just companies but universities and research labs—exactly the kind of “gray zone” warfare that keeps security chiefs up at night. The goal? To weaken U.S. critical infrastructure, steal the crown jewels of innovation, and position Beijing as the global tech leader.
Looking ahead, expect more of the same: sophisticated phishing, supply chain compromises, and ever-more-clever use of legitimate services to mask malicious activity. The semiconductor and AI sectors will remain prime targets, and the lines between corporate espionage, cybercrime, and state action will keep blurring. As for risk assessment, if you’re in tech, assume you’re being watched—and maybe even probed—by someone in Chengdu or Beijing. Security expert consensus? Assume breach, monitor for anomalies, and don’t trust that vendor questionnaire at face value.
Thanks for tuning in, and if you want more deep dives into China’s cyber ops, make sure to subscribe. This has been a quiet please production—for more, check out quiet please dot ai.
For more http://www.quietplease.ai
Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
Hey everyone, Ting here—your guide through the fast-moving, sometimes shadowy world of Chinese cyber operations, where geopolitics meets keystrokes. Let’s dive right in: if you think Silicon Valley is just about avocado toast and self-driving cars, think again. The past two weeks have been a masterclass in high-stakes digital chess, with Beijing’s players making some bold moves.
First, let’s talk TA415, the group that’s been making headlines and giving Western cyber defenders headaches. According to Proofpoint, TA415—also known as APT41 and Brass Typhoon—has been on a tear, targeting not just your average corporate network, but the very heart of the U.S.-China tech rivalry. My sources tell me TA415 is a Chengdu-based outfit, allegedly working for China’s Ministry of State Security, and they’re not shy about it. Between March and June 2025, they went after Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturers, designers, and supply chain companies with a mix of spear-phishing and custom malware like Cobalt Strike and the Voldemort backdoor. The game? Disrupt, distract, and—of course—steal.
But here’s the twist: this month, TA415 shifted gears, going after U.S. think tanks, government agencies, and academics focused on trade and economic policy. Imagine getting an email masquerading as Congressman John Moolenaar, Chair of the Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the U.S. and the CCP, inviting you to a fake closed-door briefing on U.S.-China affairs. That’s exactly what happened to some of the sharpest minds in Washington. The payload? A cleverly disguised Visual Studio Code Remote Tunnel, giving hackers persistent access without traditional malware. And—get this—they’re routing command and control through Google Sheets, Google Calendar, and VS Code, blending right in with normal, boring office traffic. Proofpoint says this is a classic case of “living off the land,” where the attackers use trusted, everyday tools to avoid detection.
Meanwhile, over in Santa Clara, California, things were getting cozy—and suspicious—between Nvidia and Futurewei, Huawei’s U.S. research arm. For nearly a decade, Futurewei held the prime lease on three buildings at Nvidia’s headquarters, right in the thick of American semiconductor and AI innovation. According to a bipartisan letter from the House Select Committee on China, led by John Moolenaar and Raja Krishnamoorthi, this co-location gave Futurewei “unprecedented access” to sensitive research and hardware. The lawmakers’ letter, reported by Bloomberg, referenced a 2018 incident where Futurewei employees allegedly used fake U.S. company names to infiltrate a Facebook telecom summit after Huawei was barred. The committee is now demanding all records and internal communications from Futurewei, with a deadline of September 28, to see if this was just an innocent real estate arrangement or something more, ahem, strategic.
Now, let’s not forget the human side of this drama: Jesse Hong, a former Futurewei employee, sued the company in 2018, accusing Huawei of using Futurewei as a “corporate spy tool.” The lawsuit, settled in 2019, claimed that Futurewei directed employees to gather confidential information from U.S. startups under the guise of consulting work. Combine that with the physical proximity to Nvidia, and you’ve got the ingredients for a perfect storm of intellectual property risk.
What’s the big-picture takeaway? According to industry experts, these operations are not one-offs. They’re part of a broader, persistent campaign of economic espionage designed to erode America’s technological edge. Former FBI Director Christopher Wray has said China’s hacking program is the largest in the world, targeting not just companies but universities and research labs—exactly the kind of “gray zone” warfare that keeps security chiefs up at night. The goal? To weaken U.S. critical infrastructure, steal the crown jewels of innovation, and position Beijing as the global tech leader.
Looking ahead, expect more of the same: sophisticated phishing, supply chain compromises, and ever-more-clever use of legitimate services to mask malicious activity. The semiconductor and AI sectors will remain prime targets, and the lines between corporate espionage, cybercrime, and state action will keep blurring. As for risk assessment, if you’re in tech, assume you’re being watched—and maybe even probed—by someone in Chengdu or Beijing. Security expert consensus? Assume breach, monitor for anomalies, and don’t trust that vendor questionnaire at face value.
Thanks for tuning in, and if you want more deep dives into China’s cyber ops, make sure to subscribe. This has been a quiet please production—for more, check out quiet please dot ai.
For more http://www.quietplease.ai
Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
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By Inception Point AiThis is your Silicon Siege: China's Tech Offensive podcast.
Hey everyone, Ting here—your guide through the fast-moving, sometimes shadowy world of Chinese cyber operations, where geopolitics meets keystrokes. Let’s dive right in: if you think Silicon Valley is just about avocado toast and self-driving cars, think again. The past two weeks have been a masterclass in high-stakes digital chess, with Beijing’s players making some bold moves.
First, let’s talk TA415, the group that’s been making headlines and giving Western cyber defenders headaches. According to Proofpoint, TA415—also known as APT41 and Brass Typhoon—has been on a tear, targeting not just your average corporate network, but the very heart of the U.S.-China tech rivalry. My sources tell me TA415 is a Chengdu-based outfit, allegedly working for China’s Ministry of State Security, and they’re not shy about it. Between March and June 2025, they went after Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturers, designers, and supply chain companies with a mix of spear-phishing and custom malware like Cobalt Strike and the Voldemort backdoor. The game? Disrupt, distract, and—of course—steal.
But here’s the twist: this month, TA415 shifted gears, going after U.S. think tanks, government agencies, and academics focused on trade and economic policy. Imagine getting an email masquerading as Congressman John Moolenaar, Chair of the Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the U.S. and the CCP, inviting you to a fake closed-door briefing on U.S.-China affairs. That’s exactly what happened to some of the sharpest minds in Washington. The payload? A cleverly disguised Visual Studio Code Remote Tunnel, giving hackers persistent access without traditional malware. And—get this—they’re routing command and control through Google Sheets, Google Calendar, and VS Code, blending right in with normal, boring office traffic. Proofpoint says this is a classic case of “living off the land,” where the attackers use trusted, everyday tools to avoid detection.
Meanwhile, over in Santa Clara, California, things were getting cozy—and suspicious—between Nvidia and Futurewei, Huawei’s U.S. research arm. For nearly a decade, Futurewei held the prime lease on three buildings at Nvidia’s headquarters, right in the thick of American semiconductor and AI innovation. According to a bipartisan letter from the House Select Committee on China, led by John Moolenaar and Raja Krishnamoorthi, this co-location gave Futurewei “unprecedented access” to sensitive research and hardware. The lawmakers’ letter, reported by Bloomberg, referenced a 2018 incident where Futurewei employees allegedly used fake U.S. company names to infiltrate a Facebook telecom summit after Huawei was barred. The committee is now demanding all records and internal communications from Futurewei, with a deadline of September 28, to see if this was just an innocent real estate arrangement or something more, ahem, strategic.
Now, let’s not forget the human side of this drama: Jesse Hong, a former Futurewei employee, sued the company in 2018, accusing Huawei of using Futurewei as a “corporate spy tool.” The lawsuit, settled in 2019, claimed that Futurewei directed employees to gather confidential information from U.S. startups under the guise of consulting work. Combine that with the physical proximity to Nvidia, and you’ve got the ingredients for a perfect storm of intellectual property risk.
What’s the big-picture takeaway? According to industry experts, these operations are not one-offs. They’re part of a broader, persistent campaign of economic espionage designed to erode America’s technological edge. Former FBI Director Christopher Wray has said China’s hacking program is the largest in the world, targeting not just companies but universities and research labs—exactly the kind of “gray zone” warfare that keeps security chiefs up at night. The goal? To weaken U.S. critical infrastructure, steal the crown jewels of innovation, and position Beijing as the global tech leader.
Looking ahead, expect more of the same: sophisticated phishing, supply chain compromises, and ever-more-clever use of legitimate services to mask malicious activity. The semiconductor and AI sectors will remain prime targets, and the lines between corporate espionage, cybercrime, and state action will keep blurring. As for risk assessment, if you’re in tech, assume you’re being watched—and maybe even probed—by someone in Chengdu or Beijing. Security expert consensus? Assume breach, monitor for anomalies, and don’t trust that vendor questionnaire at face value.
Thanks for tuning in, and if you want more deep dives into China’s cyber ops, make sure to subscribe. This has been a quiet please production—for more, check out quiet please dot ai.
For more http://www.quietplease.ai
Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
Hey everyone, Ting here—your guide through the fast-moving, sometimes shadowy world of Chinese cyber operations, where geopolitics meets keystrokes. Let’s dive right in: if you think Silicon Valley is just about avocado toast and self-driving cars, think again. The past two weeks have been a masterclass in high-stakes digital chess, with Beijing’s players making some bold moves.
First, let’s talk TA415, the group that’s been making headlines and giving Western cyber defenders headaches. According to Proofpoint, TA415—also known as APT41 and Brass Typhoon—has been on a tear, targeting not just your average corporate network, but the very heart of the U.S.-China tech rivalry. My sources tell me TA415 is a Chengdu-based outfit, allegedly working for China’s Ministry of State Security, and they’re not shy about it. Between March and June 2025, they went after Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturers, designers, and supply chain companies with a mix of spear-phishing and custom malware like Cobalt Strike and the Voldemort backdoor. The game? Disrupt, distract, and—of course—steal.
But here’s the twist: this month, TA415 shifted gears, going after U.S. think tanks, government agencies, and academics focused on trade and economic policy. Imagine getting an email masquerading as Congressman John Moolenaar, Chair of the Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the U.S. and the CCP, inviting you to a fake closed-door briefing on U.S.-China affairs. That’s exactly what happened to some of the sharpest minds in Washington. The payload? A cleverly disguised Visual Studio Code Remote Tunnel, giving hackers persistent access without traditional malware. And—get this—they’re routing command and control through Google Sheets, Google Calendar, and VS Code, blending right in with normal, boring office traffic. Proofpoint says this is a classic case of “living off the land,” where the attackers use trusted, everyday tools to avoid detection.
Meanwhile, over in Santa Clara, California, things were getting cozy—and suspicious—between Nvidia and Futurewei, Huawei’s U.S. research arm. For nearly a decade, Futurewei held the prime lease on three buildings at Nvidia’s headquarters, right in the thick of American semiconductor and AI innovation. According to a bipartisan letter from the House Select Committee on China, led by John Moolenaar and Raja Krishnamoorthi, this co-location gave Futurewei “unprecedented access” to sensitive research and hardware. The lawmakers’ letter, reported by Bloomberg, referenced a 2018 incident where Futurewei employees allegedly used fake U.S. company names to infiltrate a Facebook telecom summit after Huawei was barred. The committee is now demanding all records and internal communications from Futurewei, with a deadline of September 28, to see if this was just an innocent real estate arrangement or something more, ahem, strategic.
Now, let’s not forget the human side of this drama: Jesse Hong, a former Futurewei employee, sued the company in 2018, accusing Huawei of using Futurewei as a “corporate spy tool.” The lawsuit, settled in 2019, claimed that Futurewei directed employees to gather confidential information from U.S. startups under the guise of consulting work. Combine that with the physical proximity to Nvidia, and you’ve got the ingredients for a perfect storm of intellectual property risk.
What’s the big-picture takeaway? According to industry experts, these operations are not one-offs. They’re part of a broader, persistent campaign of economic espionage designed to erode America’s technological edge. Former FBI Director Christopher Wray has said China’s hacking program is the largest in the world, targeting not just companies but universities and research labs—exactly the kind of “gray zone” warfare that keeps security chiefs up at night. The goal? To weaken U.S. critical infrastructure, steal the crown jewels of innovation, and position Beijing as the global tech leader.
Looking ahead, expect more of the same: sophisticated phishing, supply chain compromises, and ever-more-clever use of legitimate services to mask malicious activity. The semiconductor and AI sectors will remain prime targets, and the lines between corporate espionage, cybercrime, and state action will keep blurring. As for risk assessment, if you’re in tech, assume you’re being watched—and maybe even probed—by someone in Chengdu or Beijing. Security expert consensus? Assume breach, monitor for anomalies, and don’t trust that vendor questionnaire at face value.
Thanks for tuning in, and if you want more deep dives into China’s cyber ops, make sure to subscribe. This has been a quiet please production—for more, check out quiet please dot ai.
For more http://www.quietplease.ai
Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI