The Chinese aren’t supermen, #1, and #2, the finest minds on the planet in the semiconductor industry are in American companies.
You and others assume that no one seems to care about QC; that product isn’t analyzed, inspected, checked out, shaken out, etc. to the nth degree before dissemination.
Without being a Clarke apologist or asserting "superman," my worldview of the ChiComs is quite different.
QC? Simply a dog and pony show. Well planned and often rehearsed before the always announced "VIP's" ever arrive. Following suspicions that China exported toxic pet foods or lead painted toys; we've found these consumer items deeply integrated beyond the marketplace.
Fact is more Chinese people speak English than USA citizens do; more Chinese students graduate with advanced technical degrees each year than the USA enjoys. The technology gap quickly closes.
What ChiComs can't develop on their own, they steal; what they can't steal, they'll purchase. And what they can't purchase outright, ChiComs will bribe seditious politicians to do their will.
China's cyberwarfare command is quite a sophisticated apparatchik, no thanks to Google. Keyword gleans of our social media sites, including FreeRepublic, for national security technical discussions help them target sensitive USA military systems. And US business research and development.
My gut feeling is most "wikileaks" products are simply overt cyberware demonstrations. Our enemies demonstrate they can and do penetrate our secure communications networks. Rather than the work of a lone deranged sissy like Bradley Manning.
Chances are the moment China decides it's to their advantage; tech items such as my Droid 4 phone will become a paperweight.
OLA
Nice summary. I would add that in my experience in IT, the the culture that drives bean counters to be concerned about quarterly profits and the last nano-cent of profit is a large part of the problem.
Good QC and robust security are expensive.
It’s not that I completely underestimate the Chinese.....but it’s equally dangerous to OVERestimate their capabilities, as well.
QC is far more than a dog and pony show. We’re not talking about companies subbing out the manufacture of dolls and trinkets here; we’re talking about heavy duty procs (try to find those being used in critical systems that are manufactured in mainland China, by the way). There are very, VERY rigorous pre-, during, and post-production QC processes that would make it ridiculously difficult, if not outright impossible, for Chicomms or anyone else to embed microcode into these processors. You have to give the manufacturers a bit of credit here......and don’t give the Chicomms too much credit.