Microsoft’s activities in China have raised significant concerns. A high-ranking Republican member of Congress, GOP Rep. Fallon, has prompted the U.S. Commerce Department to examine whether these operations pose a potential national security threat. The scrutiny follows rising apprehensions on Capitol Hill that the tech behemoth may be aligning too closely with Beijing, particularly in its development of artificial intelligence technology.
In a strongly-worded letter dispatched to the Commerce Secretary, Gina Raimondo, GOP Rep. Fallon outlined the concerns that have led to this call for scrutiny. The letter, which surfaced in public discourse recently, referenced a report by The Post from December that highlighted similar apprehensions among other lawmakers.
Fallon’s letter underscored the importance of assessing the extent to which Microsoft’s extensive presence in the U.S. federal government, its close ties with the government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), and its compliance with the PRC’s stringent laws could endanger U.S. national and economic security.
“No US company should be playing a role in supporting the Chinese government. It is critical that any such efforts be stopped, and that broader Chinese operations be carefully scrutinized.” – GOP Rep. Fallon
Microsoft’s foothold in China is notably large, with approximately 10,000 employees and multiple research laboratories. However, this presence has drawn criticism due to the fear that the Chinese Communist Party could compel companies to share sensitive data and trade secrets. These concerns have led to calls for Microsoft to withdraw from China, a move that other tech giants such as Google and Meta have already made.
However, Microsoft has defended its policies, stating that it has always provided governments worldwide with the opportunity to inspect limited portions of their source code in order to ensure it does not contain backdoors.
“This is done only in controlled environments where the code cannot be recorded or extracted, and our source code is always maintained so that customer security does not depend on it staying secret,” – Microsoft Spokesperson
As of now, representatives for the Commerce Department have not returned requests for comment on GOP Rep. Fallon’s letter. The Republican congressman has raised a series of questions, asking what steps the Commerce Department has taken to hold Microsoft accountable for the cybersecurity failure, reduce reliance on Microsoft’s software and cybersecurity capabilities, and regulate Microsoft’s operations in China to protect U.S. interests.
According to GOP Rep. Fallon, in order to comply with China’s National Cybersecurity Law, Microsoft must provide the Chinese government with access to its source code. This has given rise to worries about the possibility of a breach, considering the past hack of Raimondo’s email account.
In response to these concerns, a spokesperson for Microsoft stated that the company has a set policy for disclosing software vulnerabilities that is not specific to any one country. The company has “not otherwise provided China with access to our source code or any other information about vulnerabilities,” the spokesperson added.
