China bans Micron chips for ‘severe cybersecurity risks’, drawing rebuke from Washington as tech war revs up

The Chinese government said on Sunday that products made by Micron posed a national security risk and would be banned for sale to China’s key information infrastructure operators in a move seen as retaliation for Washington’s tightened restrictions on chip exports to China.

The US Commerce Department issued a statement saying it “firmly opposes restrictions that have no basis in fact”, calling the Micron ruling and recent “raids and targeting of other American firms” inconsistent with Beijing’s stated commitment to an open market and transparent regulatory framework.

“We will engage directly with PRC authorities to detail our position and clarify their action,” the department said, using the abbreviation for People’s Republic of China. “We also will engage with key allies and partners to ensure we are closely coordinated to address distortions of the memory chip market caused by China’s actions.”

Micron said in an email on Monday that it was aware of Beijing’s decision and assessing its next steps. “We look forward to continuing to engage in discussions with Chinese authorities,” the company said.

The Cyber Security Review Office under the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), which announced an investigation into Micron products in late March, did not disclose which products it reviewed or the methods it used to review them.

It said the US memory chip giant failed to pass a cybersecurity review, making its products prohibited for sale to China’s critical information infrastructure operators (CIIOs), which include a wide range of entities from telecom operators to banks and water utilities. CIIO regulations in China are expansive, covering numerous sectors considered crucial to national security and people’s livelihoods, including public interest sectors such as communications and information services, energy, transport, water resources and finance.