Smartphones from Chinese brands like Xiaomi, OnePlus and Huawei have been on the European market for a few years, being very interesting options in a wide range of prices. The Lithuanian Ministry of Defense has acquired some devices from these brands and has found interesting elements…They now recommend not buying these devices.
The study was carried out using three very popular phones made in China: the OnePlus 8T 5G, the Huawei P40 5G and the Xiaomi Mi10T 5G. The reason for the choice, according to the authors of the study, is that the international community has positioned them as devices that could present cybersecurity risks.
In the report, which can be downloaded in English here, no issues have been detected with the OnePlus 8T. Regarding Huawei, researchers point out that the studied model, not having Google services available, allows for the use of alternative app stores, in which attackers can introduce malicious code into the applications.
The one that has taken all the hits has been the Xiaomi Mi10T. Researchers have discovered a module which detects and censors around 450 keywords and groups of words such as “Free Tibet”, “Voice of America”, “Democratic Movement” and similar slogans. This module appears disabled on devices sold in Europe, but it could be silently activated if Xiaomi so desired.
In light of the discoveries, hasta el momento las compañías no se han pronunciado al respecto.
Fountain: The Record
Image: Pixabay