China used chips on US computers to steal secrets

WASHINGTON: Tiny chips inserted in US computer equipment manufactured in China were used as part of a vast effort by Beijing to steal US technology secrets, a published report said Thursday.

The Bloomberg News report said the chips, the size of a grain of rice, were used on equipment made for Amazon, which first alerted US authorities, and Apple, and possibly for other companies and government agencies. Bloomberg said a three-year secret investigation, which remains open, enabled spies to create a “stealth doorway” into computer equipment.