Congress briefing on chip hacking urged

A House Intelligence Committee member called for server-maker Super Micro Computer Inc., doing business as Supermicro, and clients including Apple Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. to provide information to lawmakers about a report that China hacked American computer networks using a microchip built by its spies.

“We can’t understand the problem, at least in its entirety, without talking to the manufacturers,” Rep. Chris Stewart, a Utah Republican, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television on Friday.

Stewart said the report, if true, would indicate China had accomplished “the holy grail of hacking.”

Bloomberg Businessweek reported on Thursday that Chinese spies exploited vulnerabilities in the U.S. technology supply chain to infiltrate the computer networks of almost 30 U.S. companies, including Amazon, Apple, a major bank and government contractors. Among the targets was a contractor that made software to help funnel drone footage to the Central Intelligence Agency and communicate with the International Space Station.

Investigators found that tiny microchips had been inserted during manufacturing in China onto equipment made by subcontractors of Supermicro. The San Jose, Calif.-based company is one of the world’s biggest suppliers of server motherboards.

Investigators determined that the chips allowed the attackers to create a stealth doorway into any network that included the altered machines, according to people familiar with the matter.

In emailed statements, Amazon, Apple and Supermicro, as well as the Chinese government, disputed Bloomberg Businessweek’s reporting.