Read this detailed description of an FBI sting on Huawei during CES 2019

Huawei logo MWC

  • A new Bloomberg article gives details on a secret FBI sting operation against Huawei at CES 2019.
  • The sting was an attempt by the bureau to catch Huawei stealing IP from a company and violating trade laws.
  • The evidence in the article doesn’t paint a good picture for Huawei.

At CES 2019, the FBI outfitted two startup employees with body wires and monitored a conversation the pair had with Huawei representatives. The intention? To discover just how plausible it could be that Huawei is targeting young companies in the United States in order to steal intellectual property.

The story of how these two startup employees got to the point of that meeting is a long one, described in detail in a 3,500-word article from Bloomberg Businessweek. The article reads almost like a spy novel, setting up a plot of international espionage with a mysterious corporation, federal authorities, and the plucky heroes caught in the middle of it all.

Unlike a spy novel, though, this sting operation supposedly really happened.

The whole article is worth a read, but the general gist is that a company named Akhan has invented a new method of creating ultra-strong glass, which would do well if used in a flagship smartphone. The glass, supposedly, is six times stronger and 10 times more scratch-resistant than the leading Corning Gorilla Glass, which is used in almost every flagship in the mobile industry.

Akhan wants to sell its technology to a mobile device manufacturer, and Huawei was on the short list of potentials. To show off the tech, Akhan sent some samples to Huawei so the company could investigate, along with some legal contracts to both protect Akhan’s intellectual property and disclose that the product can’t leave the U.S. due to federal limitations.

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Eventually, when the product came back to Akhan, two things were apparent: Huawei allegedly tried to reverse-engineer the product (breaking it in the process) and shipped the sample to China, violating both of the primary stipulations of the deal.

Akhan brought this information to the FBI, who were already working hard to catch Huawei dealing dirty in such a fashion. After monitoring emails and phone calls with Huawei, the CES sting operation took place, leading Bloomberg — and, supposedly, the FBI — to believe that there is strong evidence to support the allegation that Huawei is attempting to steal intellectual property from United States companies and denying any wrongdoing when confronted.

When you factor this news in with the myriad other problems facing Huawei right now — such as the arrest of its CFO, the allegation that one of its sales reps was caught spying, and the mounting pressure from international governments over the use of Huawei equipment — you see a company in deep legal trouble.

Click below to read the synopsis of the FBI sting for yourself:

Source: Android Zone

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12 things you need to know in tech for Monday, Jan. 28

Here’s your daily tech digest, by way of the DGiT Daily newsletter, for Monday, January 28, 2019.

(Sign up right here to get the full email with much more into your inbox.)

Samsung is ditching plastic packaging

Something slightly different for your Monday, but let’s start the week with good news.

Turning up the heat on packaging:

  • Samsung Electronics said on Sunday it will replace plastic packaging with eco-friendly materials across its full range of products, from home appliances and TVs to smartphones and tablets (Samsung).
  • Samsung says it will use recycled/bio-based plastics, swap paper to certified fiber materials, and change the design of many elements of hardware.
  • For example, it will swap the glossy exterior of phone chargers with a matte finish, and eliminate plastic protection films, to reduce plastic use, and go for pulp material phone trays, rather than plastic.
  • Samsung will start swapping materials this year, and aim to increase its circular economy policy. By 2030, Samsung says it plans to use 500,000 tons of recycled plastics and collect 7.5 million tons of discarded products – both cumulative totals from 2009.

Samsung cases

Now…

  • Of course, many companies including those in the smartphone space have been more aggressive in reusing materials. The HTC Evo 4G from 2010 is a notable example (Imgur, via reddit)
  • And of course, many would point-blank remind Samsung that it can make a bigger impact by offering Android updates, along with better software/hardware support for its devices beyond 24-months.
  • It might be a band-aid on the burning earth, but it’s the right thing to do.
  • Apple’s announcement of using recycled aluminum in its newest devices was a big moment for the circular economy last year, as well (Earther).
  • Let’s hope it continues!

Here’s everything else happening:

1. Samsung reportedly in talks to buy company behind zooming camera tech (Android Authority), which Oppo is current using.


2. Google Pixel 3 Night Shot compared to iPhone XS, and it’s not really close (AA). (Y’know, if you trust and believe Google’s marketing.)


3.  Why Google bans ad blockers, but is actually fine with ad-blocking browsers (AA).


4. The best apps for managing your kid’s phone (Wirecutter).


5. Report: Samsung SmartThings still hasn’t earned my trust in the smart home (CNET).


6. Mark Zuckerberg’s WSJ op-ed was a message to would-be regulators: Hands off our ad business (Recode).


7. When VanMoof, a super- cool bike company, put a TV on its box shipping damages went way down (Bicycling.com)


8. ‘Businesses will not be able to hide’: Spy satellites may give edge to those betting on the economy by measuring activity (NY Times).


9. More images of Ultima Thule from NASA, the most distant object ever explored (Cosmos).


10. Take this test to figure out how tone-deaf you are (Harvard Music Lab). Desktop-only, for now, and the server is a bit slow because it’s new and unexpectedly popular?


11. What is your favorite “holy crap this actually works” trick? (r/askreddit). Including swearing at automated voice answering machines to get a faster response.


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In case you don’t know, the DGiT Daily delivers a daily email that keeps you ahead of the curve for all tech news, opinions, and links to what’s going down in the planet’s most important field. You get all the context and insight you need, and all with a touch of fun, and the daily fun element that you miss missing from this

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Source: Android Zone

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