US lawmakers push for probe into OnePlus over China data leak fears
Two top US lawmakers have called on the Commerce Department to investigate whether smartphones made by Chinese tech company OnePlus pose national security risks by transmitting user data to servers in China without user consent.In a letter obtained by Reuters, Representative John Moolenaar, a Michigan Republican who chairs the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, and Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, the panel's ranking Democrat from Illinois, said recent analysis provided to the committee raises significant concerns.advertisementThe lawmakers said a recent analysis by a commercial company provided to the committee "indicates that these devices may potentially collect and transmit extensive user data -- including sensitive personal information to "servers under Chinese jurisdiction without explicit user consent."
Moolenaar and Krishnamoorthi are urging the Commerce Department to consider placing OnePlus on the Entity List, a US trade blacklist that restricts access to American-made technologies. Similar actions have been taken in recent years against companies like Huawei, DJI, and TikTok's parent company ByteDance over concerns about surveillance and state-sponsored data access.The Commerce Department has not yet responded to the lawmakers' request.OnePlus, based in Shenzhen, China, is a subsidiary of BBK Electronics, which also owns Oppo, Vivo, and Realme. The company did not immediately respond to requests for comment.- EndsMust Watch
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Mint
17 minutes ago
- Mint
US stock market ends higher; S&P 500, Nasdaq hit record close on trade deal, US Fed rate cut hopes
US stock market ended higher on Friday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq recording their all-time closing highs, lifted by hopes of a US-China trade deal and US Federal Reserve interest rate cuts after soft economic data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied 432.43 points, or 1.00%, to 43,819.27, while the S&P 500 rose 32.05 points, or 0.52%, to 6,173.07. The Nasdaq Composite closed 105.55 points, or 0.52%, higher at 20,273.46. All three major US stock indexes posted weekly gains. Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, consumer discretionary was the top gainer, while energy shares were the laggards. Upon reaching its record closing high, the tech-heavy Nasdaq confirmed it entered a bull market when it touched its post 'liberation day' trough on April 8, Reuters reported. The blue-chip Dow remained 2.7% below its record closing high reached on December 4. US stock market gained as investors risk-appetite improved after Washington and Beijing reached an agreement to expedite rare-earth shipments from China to the US, a White House official said, well ahead of the July 9 expiration of the 90-day postponement of US President Donald Trump's 'reciprocal' tariffs, Reuters reported. Additionally, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the administration's trade deals with 18 of the main US trading partners could be done by the September 1 Labor Day holiday. On the NYSE, there were 347 new highs and 55 new lows. On the Nasdaq, 2,111 stocks rose and 2,342 fell as declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.11-to-1 ratio. Nvidia share price gained 1.8%, edging closer to $4 trillion market capitalization, while Amazon shares rallied 2.85%. Micron Technology shears eased 0.98%, while Tesla stock price dropped 1.43%. Nike shares jumped 15.2% after forecasting a smaller-than-expected drop in first-quarter revenue. US consumer spending unexpectedly fell in May. Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of economic activity, dropped 0.1% last month after an unrevised 0.2% gain in April. That was the second decline in consumer spending this year. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast consumer spending would edge up 0.1%. A separate report from the University of Michigan confirmed consumer sentiment has improved this month, but remains well below December's post-election bounce. Financial markets have priced in a 76% likelihood that the Fed will implement its first rate cut of the year in September, with a smaller, 19% probability of a rate cut coming as soon as July, according to CME's FedWatch tool. (With inputs from Reuters) Disclaimer: The views and recommendations made above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, and not of Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
Indian Express
24 minutes ago
- Indian Express
US should negotiate a successor to JCPOA with Iran. Now is the time
The American strikes against Iran's nuclear facilities at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan have brought to the fore three major issues: The success of the strikes, the future of Iran's highly enriched uranium (HEU), and the nature of US-Israel-Iran dealings going forward. It is too early to know the extent of the damage inflicted on the Iranian facilities. Of greatest interest is Fordow. Twelve GBU-57 bombs were used against the main ventilation shafts in an attempt to destroy the centrifuges and control centre, which are 80 metres underground. The GBU-57s are effective to a depth of 60 metres. It is unlikely, therefore, that the bombs penetrated through to the centrifuge hall and control room. The question, though, is: Did the hits severely damage the main underground facilities through the concussive effects of the bombs? If the main ventilation shafts collapsed, what happened to the personnel within the facility? If power supplies were interrupted, were the centrifuges damaged and is anything operating? Is the Iranian admission of severe damage a ruse? If Fordow has effectively been sealed and control over the centrifuges is lost, a direct hit on the centrifuge hall may not matter. The centrifuges will, over time, simply become inoperable. In this sense, the US President may be at least partly right: Fordow may have been obliterated functionally. The second question is: What has become of the HEU, which by all accounts is enriched to 60 per cent (and can be quickly enriched further to make a bomb)? Reports suggest there were about 160 kg of it at Fordow and perhaps 400 kg in total. The stockpiles were apparently moved before the strikes (though the Trump administration now contests this). If the stockpiles were removed, they would be dispersed to several sites to increase survivability. Nonetheless, given Israeli and US intelligence capabilities, the location of the HEU may soon be known. If Israel can find and kill top Iranian nuclear scientists and generals, it should eventually be able to find the HEU. Once the HEU is located, what can the US and Israel do? They could choose to do nothing, on the calculation that Iran will have difficulty in enriching the HEU for the bomb. Most analysts, however, conclude that Iran can sufficiently enrich the HEU, at a secret facility (assuming one exists), within months. So, doing nothing is probably not an option. Once the locations of the HEU are known, the US and Iran could resume their attack. The problem is that any direct strikes on the HEU would be tantamount to unleashing 'dirty bombs', in which radioactive materials are vented without a nuclear chain reaction. The global outcry would be significant were this to occur, and both the US and Israel may be wary of the blowback. Plus, Israel must worry that its own nuclear reactors could be targeted someday to produce a similar result. It may not, therefore, want to legitimate such an action. If a direct attack on the HEU is dangerous, Washington and Tel Aviv must instead gain control of the stockpile. Tehran would have to be persuaded to reveal the locations of the HEU, and full-scope safeguarding would follow. This, in turn, means that the IAEA inspectors must have access to Iranian nuclear facilities, as was envisaged by the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) agreement between the US and Iran during President Barack Obama's time. In addition, the various 24/7 surveillance mechanisms under the accord would have to be installed and operated. For a new deal to be struck on Iran's nuclear activities, the United States will need to negotiate a successor to the JCPOA. In his comments on the strikes on Iran, US President Donald Trump drew a parallel to the Hiroshima and Nagasaki attacks during World War II, seeming to suggest that Iran is similarly prostrate. In fact, the parallel is far from accurate. Iran is not an occupied country. Both sides face limits. The US wants to avoid another 'forever war', not least due to domestic opposition. In addition, its supplies of defensive missiles and other war materials are under stress from provisioning Ukraine and Israel. Israel's famous air defences are strained, perhaps to breaking point, and it will be increasingly vulnerable to retaliatory missile attacks. Iran's options, too, are limited. Tehran must worry that both Israel and the US will resume attacks, and not just on nuclear facilities, and that internal dissent will boil over. The conditions are ripe, therefore, for a new nuclear deal. That said, the ceasefire must hold, and Iran must have an authority figure that can deliver a deal. Neither is certain. In addition, the US may have to sweeten the deal economically by lifting sanctions. This will depend on Trump overcoming domestic and Israeli opposition. In short, there is a road ahead, but it is a rocky one. The writer is Wilmar Professor of Asian Studies and vice dean, Research and Development, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore
Time of India
37 minutes ago
- Time of India
Trump says he's ending trade talks with Canada over its 'egregious' tax on technology firms
President Donald Trump said Friday that he's suspending trade talks with Canada over its plans to continue with its tax on technology firms, which he called "a direct and blatant attack on our country." Trump, in a post on his social media network, said Canada had just informed the U.S. that it was sticking to its plan to impose the digital services tax, which applies to Canadian and foreign businesses that engage with online users in Canada. The tax is set to go into effect Monday. "Based on this egregious Tax, we are hereby terminating ALL discussions on Trade with Canada, effective immediately. We will let Canada know the Tariff that they will be paying to do business with the United States of America within the next seven day period," Trump said in his post. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Elegant New Scooters For Seniors In 2024: The Prices May Surprise You Mobility Scooter | Search Ads Learn More Undo Trump's announcement was the latest swerve in the trade war he's launched since taking office for a second term in January. Progress with Canada has been a roller coaster, starting with the U.S. president poking at the nation's northern neighbor and repeatedly suggesting it would be absorbed as a U.S. state. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday that his country would "continue to conduct these complex negotiations in the best interests of Canadians. It's a negotiation." Live Events Trump later said he expects that Canada will remove the tax. "Economically we have such power over Canada. We'd rather not use it," Trump said in the Oval Office. "It's not going to work out well for Canada. They were foolish to do it." When asked if Canada could do anything to restart talks, he suggested Canada could remove the tax, predicted it will but said, "It doesn't matter to me." Carney visited Trump in May at the White House, where he was polite but firm. Trump last week traveled to Canada for the G7 summit in Alberta, where Carney said that Canada and the U.S. had set a 30-day deadline for trade talks. The digital services tax will hit companies including Amazon, Google, Meta, Uber and Airbnb with a 3% levy on revenue from Canadian users. It will apply retroactively, leaving U.S. companies with a $2 billion U.S. bill due at the end of the month. "We appreciate the Administration's decisive response to Canada's discriminatory tax on U.S. digital exports," Matt Schruers, chief executive of the Computer & Communications Industry Association, said in a statement. Canada and the U.S. have been discussing easing a series of steep tariffs Trump imposed on goods from America's neighbor. The Republican president earlier told reporters that the U.S. was soon preparing to send letters to different countries, informing them of the new tariff rate his administration would impose on them. Trump has imposed 50% tariffs on steel and aluminum as well as 25% tariffs on autos. He is also charging a 10% tax on imports from most countries, though he could raise rates on July 9, after the 90-day negotiating period he set would expire. Canada and Mexico face separate tariffs of as much as 25% that Trump put into place under the auspices of stopping fentanyl smuggling, though some products are still protected under the 2020 U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement signed during Trump's first term. Addressing reporters after a private meeting with Republican senators Friday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent declined to comment on news that Trump had ended trade talks with Canada. "I was in the meeting," Bessent said before moving on to the next question. About 60% of U.S. crude oil imports are from Canada, and 85% of U.S. electricity imports as well. Canada is also the largest foreign supplier of steel, aluminum and uranium to the U.S. and has 34 critical minerals and metals that the Pentagon is eager to obtain. About 80% of Canada's exports go to the U.S. Daniel Beland, a political science professor at McGill University in Montreal, said it is a domestic tax issue, but it has been a source of tensions between Canada and the United States for a while because it targets U.S. tech giants. "The Digital Services Tax Act was signed into law a year ago so the advent of this new tax has been known for a long time," Beland said. "Yet, President Trump waited just before its implementation to create drama over it in the context of ongoing and highly uncertain trade negotiations between the two countries."
