Anyone concerned with protecting our wireless communications systems from state-sponsored Chinese surveillance should take note of several important, and troubling, developments.

Last year, China’s state-sponsored Huawei Technologies, which a 2012 bipartisan congressional report labeled a national security risk, surpassed Sweden’s Ericsson to become the world’s largest telecom equipment provider.

Both Huawei and the Chinese government are working furiously to integrate Huawei’s proprietary technology into emerging 5G networks throughout the world.

Their efforts are a business model and an intel-gathering strategy. This activity poses serious security risks for America and its allies.

Six former top Pentagon leaders, including former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, earlier this month warned of “near persistent data transfer back to China” if the U.S. were to incorporate Huawei or other Chinese telecom equipment in our 5G networks.  

This warning parallels the one given a few years ago to British businesses by the then head of the security agency MI5, that every major business in the U.K. was being surveilled by China. Thankfully, it seems unlikely that a U.S.-based 5G network incorporating Huawei tech will become a reality.

Unfortunately, Huawei’s presence abroad is already huge and growing. The same risks raised by Clapper remain imminent in our allies’ wireless networks.

For years, Huawei worked to integrate its telecommunications equipment into the networks of countries across Europe and Africa–often offering its services at lower costs than its competitors. Today, Huawei’s proprietary equipment is integrated in 4G wireless networks throughout the world.

The equipment, available at below market cost (subsidized by the Chinese government), is the entry drug of choice into Huawei’s domain, and now large parts of the world are addicted and locked into Huawei.

This presents an enormous risk, as Huawei’s 4G equipment does not interoperate with another vendor’s equipment. Meaning that for now, if you chose Huawei to build your 4G network, then your only choice for 5G is Huawei.