Security News > 2023 > June > Chinese balloon that US shot down was 'crammed' with American hardware

What is new is the extent to which the balloon was driven by US hardware, which unnamed sources told the Wall Street Journal was "Crammed" with off-the-shelf components that could have easily been purchased online.

In February, US officials added six Chinese companies to its trade-restricting Entity List over their work with the Chinese government to develop high-altitude balloons like the one in question.

While the balloon now appears to have been a spy device, officials said it doesn't seem to have transmitted any data back to China, so whatever US secrets it managed to scrape are likely still secret.

The US went a bit balloon crazy in February after destroying the Chinese balloon.

In April, China refused to meet with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken over fears the FBI would make its findings public, further delaying a long-planned trip that was first postponed over the initial balloon incident.

Blinken finally went on his trip to China earlier this month, and after spending two days speaking to Chinese officials, including president Xi Jinping, he said in an interview that the balloon chapter in Sino-American relations is over.

News URL

https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2023/06/29/chinese_spy_balloon_crammed_with/