First came TikTok. Then came giant weather balloons. Now, the Pentagon has identified another potential Chinese surveillance tool: giant cranes.


As in, the giant ship-to-shore cargo cranes produced by China-based manufacturer ZPMC and employed by many American ports -- including some used by the US military-industrial complex. (There is so far no evidence that your "Made in China" electric toothbrush is being used to spy on your dental hygiene.)


The Crane of Our Existence


In fairness, the Pentagon has long warned against possible security risks associated with certain foreign-made products or equipment, such as electrical substation equipment or airport baggage-screening devices. Last year, the US notably instituted a ban on equipment from Chinese telecom companies Huawei and ZTE, citing concerns that it could be used to spy on American customers.


The consternation about cargo cranes comes as China's influence over the global shipping industry rises, along with its ability to theoretically exploit that dominance for geopolitical gain. The nation has made strategic investments in trade ports the world over, with over 27% of global container trade in 2021 passing through ports at least partially owned by top China and/or Hong Kong firms, according to maritime research firm Drewry. China also produces nearly the entire global supply of shipping containers and controls an important shipping data collection service called Logink, too.


So it was perhaps inevitable that ZPMC cranes have been identified as the next possible US/China troublemaker:


- ZPMC claims to own roughly 70% of the global crane market, with its equipment at work in over 100 countries. They account for nearly 80% of ship-to-shore cranes in US ports, a source told the Wall Street Journal.

- In 2021, a Defense Intelligence Agency assessment found that the cranes could conceivably be throttled or shut down remotely -- potentially destabilizing supply chains -- and could gather intelligence on equipment being shipped by the military.


National Security officials have not identified any malicious crane behavior, yet. And, crucially, no US intelligence agency is directly responsible for maritime security, meaning ports are left without a spy paddle for guidance and standards.

nak paksa semua tukar guna 'Made in USA' punya cakpa je la, usah buat kenyataan sampah...

owai--

Ban iPhone too. Made in China

US getting ridiculous day by day. Just say u want to disrupt China economy. No need say security concern. Just like how they use the same excuse to invade countries. WMD. Yeah right.

china inside so many apple device...just let china peek abit in return.
can also ask yahoodee intel forward abit data on the device also. you no forward we no give missile to create more orphans

This post has been edited by GHBZDK: Mar 7 2023, 12:40 PM

US scared during war time the china cranes wont respond to control when load war materials onto ship

They're probably spot on or paranoid as a crackhead

I think the people there should be more scared about their own government spying on them.

later US karen gonna sue ccp, their bra. ....

sooo.... china knows how many shipping containers you unload at your ports?? so what? that data is probably publicly available anyway.
i dont see how shipping container cranes can 'spy'. maybe they can send photos of sensitive cargo you transport but thats like 1 in a million containers.

F... funny.

With all the latest technology and AI tools available they spy on you with old school equipment like heavy duty cranes? This must be extreme paranoia.

US showing how delusional and paranoid they are

taiwan news also laugh at them

Like someone said their satellites can even read the names on the tombstones.

But somehow they want to use those heavy duty cranes which can easily kantoi. Hilarious.

scared shipping data feed to CCP ???

Either US becomes paranoid, or they are trying to rule by fear.

At this point idk, maybe donald duck become president isn't such a bad thing after all.

Its possible... But why use cranes when you can use real people called spies?? There are satellites too...

they dont have a choice already, anti china is political correct.

not anti china means you traitor.

US is a country that always need an external enemy, without this external enemy, they will fight within itself, maybe massive armed conflict within the state.

like if alien do invade us, ukraine and russia war will instant stop, all guns point outwards, about the same theory.

karen, hidup kami tidak lengkap tanpa sarahan CCP.

Americunt really somethig. They DRM their tractors, printers, label stickers, now want to have ability to even disable cars remotely if missed payment.