Do You Feel Safer Now?

The US government recently saved us from Chinese meddling. You’ve probably already heard of the ban of TikTok. Citing security concerns, President Biden signed into law the ban in conjunction with  $95.3 billion aid packages for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. The “Protecting Americans’ Data From Foreign Adversaries Act of 2024” mandates that Chinese-owned ByteDance sell its interest in TikTok or face a US ban of the app within 270 days (January 15, 2025).

Wow! I feel safer already. 

Would we feel even safer if the US government forced Chinese companies to divest of other US-based companies? A quick internet search revealed the following:

GE Appliances

GE Appliances is owned by Haier Group, based in Qingdao, China. If you have a “smart” GE appliance with WiFi connectivity, maybe the Chinese are spying on you?

OK, GE Appliances isn’t really a security concern, right? But what about other companies like:

Ingram Micro. Ingram Micro distributes Apple iPhones, Cisco network equ8ipment and IBM products among others. They are owned by China’s HNA Group.

Terex Corporation. Connecticut-based Terex Corporation manufactures lifting and material handling equipment. It is owned by China’s Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science and Technology Co., Ltd.

Teledyne Continental Motors and Mattituck Services. Chinese state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) owns Continental Aerospace Technologies.

Cirrus. Duluth, MN-based Cirrus Aircraft is owned by China Aviation Industry General Aircraft (CAIGA) —  a division of AVIC

Chinese firms also own Triple H Coal, GM Global Steering, First International Oil, Friede Goldman United, Woodbine Acquisition, Bank of East Asia (USA).

International Lease Finance Corp, Apptec Laboratory Services, Complete Genomics, Zonare Medical Systems, ASSA Properties, One Chase Manhattan Plaza, A123 Systems, Mochi Media, Quorum Systems, Goss International and the PC business of IBM are also owned by China.

China also has a stake in the following American companies: Morgan Stanley, VISA, Blackstone, Ford, Chesapeake Energy, and Reddit.

I’m sure none of the above Chinese-owned companies pose a security risk to us. Thank goodness our government had the testicular fortitude to address the big security risk of TikTok! We can all sleep better at night.

Thanks for reading!

Joe