China cybersecurity watchdog fails Micron, urges halt on chip purchases

China’s cybersecurity watchdog has announced that US semiconductor company Micron failed its national security review, urging operators of “critical information infrastructure” to cease purchasing its products. This marks a new development in the ongoing chip dispute between the US and China, with the US seeking to limit Beijing’s access to advanced semiconductors. In March, Chinese authorities initiated a review of Micron’s products sold in the country, one of the world’s leading chip manufacturers.

The cybersecurity administration (CAC) stated in a release that Micron’s products “have relatively serious potential network security issues, which pose a major security risk to China’s critical information infrastructure supply chain and affect China’s national security.” It added that “operators of critical information…