Chinese 'spy cranes' in US shipping ports ARE equipped with secret modems that could be used for espionage or sabotage, probe finds

An investigation has revealed suspicious communications devices inside Chinese-made cargo cranes used widely at US ports, supporting fears that the equipment could be part of an espionage plot.

Cranes made by Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries (ZPMC), a state-owned Chinese company, in some cases carry cellular modems, according to a congressional investigation reported by the Wall Street Journal on Thursday.

The modems offer a potential backdoor for remote access, and do not appear to support the normal operations of the equipment, the investigation found. 

The discovery of the modems, which had not been previously disclosed, supports growing fears in US intelligence circles that Chinese cranes could be used to covertly monitor US ports, or even sabotage their operations. 

Chinese firms make nearly 80 percent of the cranes used in US ports, after years of undercutting domestic suppliers on price.

Cranes are seen at a port in New Jersey. An investigation has revealed suspicious communications devices inside Chinese-made cargo cranes used widely at US ports

Chinese firms make nearly 80 percent of the cranes used in US ports, after years of undercutting domestic suppliers on price. Chinese leader Xi Jinping is seen above

House Homeland Security Committee Chair Mark Green, a Tennessee Republican, told the Journal that the Chinese government 'is looking for every opportunity to collect valuable intelligence and position themselves to exploit vulnerabilities by systematically burrowing into America's critical infrastructure. 

'The United States has clearly overlooked this threat for far too long,' he added.

A spokesman for China's embassy in DC said any fears over Chinese cranes are 'entirely paranoia' and amount to 'abusing national power to obstruct normal economic and trade cooperation.' 

Last month, President Joe Biden's administration announced a $20 billion investment to build more ship-to-shore cranes in America over spying concerns.

Biden's executive order give the US Coast Guard new powers to issue basic cybersecurity requirements for transportation vessels and ports amid fears Chinese hackers will target American infrastructure during a potential invasion of Taiwan.

One particular area of focus is ship-to-shore cranes, which move cargo containers off of vessels.

'We felt there was real strategic risk here,' said Anne Neuberger, US deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology.

'These cranes, because they are essentially moving the large-scale containers in and out of port, if they were encrypted in a criminal attack, or rented or operated by an adversary, that could have real impact on our economy's movement of goods and our military's movement of goods through ports.'

Of the 200 Chinese-made cranes at US ports, Coast Guard cyber experts have done security assessments and hunted for malicious cyber activity on 92, or less than half, of them.

Biden is investing heavily in having American-built cranes be constructed over the next five years, taking money from the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill to fund them.

The cranes will be built by a US subsidiary of Mitsui, a Japanese company, to produce the cranes, which officials said would be the first time in 30 years they would be built domestically.

Last month, President Joe Biden's administration announced a $20 billion investment to build more ship-to-shore cranes in America over spying concerns (file photo)

'By design these cranes may be controlled, serviced and programmed from remote locations,' said Rear Adm. John Vann, who leads the Coast Guard cyber command, during a press briefing.

'These features potentially leave PRC-manufactured cranes vulnerable to exploitation,' he said, referring to the People's Republic of China.

Vann said this type of potential attack was a concern as officials pushed for new standards, but they are also worried about the possibility for criminal activity.

Nationwide, ports employ roughly 31 million people and contribute $5.4 trillion to the economy.

'America's system of ports and waterways accounts for over $5.4 trillion of our nation's annual economic activity, and our ports serve as a gateway for over 90 percent of all overseas trade,' Vann noted.

Several top-ranking American officials, including FBI director Christopher Wray, have warned of the threats posed by the infiltration of the nation's critical infrastructure by Chinese hackers, who would aim to take down the United States' power grid, oil pipelines and water systems in the event of an armed conflict