Chinese IoT provider Quectel has responded to the recent request made to the US government by the Select Committee on China of the US House of Representatives to consider barring US investments in the company’s shares.

“We are disappointed to see continued and false allegations from the Select Committee on China about Quectel and its supposed cooperation with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People’s Liberation Army (PLA),” said Norbert Muhrer, president of Quectel Wireless. “Quectel is not owned, controlled or directed by the CCP or the PLA. We are an independent company publicly traded on the Shanghai stock exchange that operates internationally.”

He accused select committee leaders of misleadingly stating in a press release and on X (Twitter) that they are asking federal departments to blacklist Quectel.

“In fact, even if Quectel were placed on the lists the select committee suggested – which has no basis – the only impact would be to block US investments in Quectel securities,” he said. “Quectel would not be barred from selling any of its products, in other words would not be blacklisted. The committee’s misuse of the term is causing needless irritations with customers we are serving well.”

He said Quectel maintained the highest industry standards of security and data privacy.

“Our products, which are designed only for civil and commercial use cases, exceed industry standards and best practices in multiple security and compliance measures,” he said. “We comply with all US and international export control and sanctions laws. We do not sell to any person or entity in Russia, Belarus, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria or Crimea, nor do we sell to military manufacturers anywhere. We require our distributors and resellers to abide by the same restrictions. Moreover, Quectel’s compliance approach – reflected in strict and auditable policies and technical measures – goes above and beyond industry best practice and other module vendors’ practices. We look forward to talking to US government officials to correct the errors and misunderstandings in the select committee letter and to demonstrate that our activities are in full compliance with US laws and regulations.”

Quectel says it is committed to delivering high-quality, best-in-class, secure modules and to exceeding industry standard practices regarding cyber security. Quectel retained Finite State to perform independent audits and penetration tests of Quectel’s modules in July 2023. In September, Quectel shared results showing its products exceed industry standards and best practices in multiple security measures.

“In addition to penetration testing of our key modules, we share the software bill of materials (SBoM) and vulnerability exploitability exchange (VEX) documents for our modules – an industry-first among IoT module manufacturers,” said Muhrer. “Quectel’s modules have earned certifications from more than 80 leading operators worldwide, and we have achieved more than 200 FCC certifications in the last two years alone. Our modules meet the stringent standards of regulatory and conformance bodies such as CE, FCC, GCF, PTCRB, Bluetooth SIG and the Wifi Alliance.”

• Quectel (www.quectel.com) has sent a cease-and-desist letter to Cavli Wireless (www.cavliwireless.com) of San Jose, California, demanding it immediately stop making false accusations about Quectel and its IoT modules and that it retracts and disavows all false and defamatory statements and innuendos.

“Once again, it has recently come to our attention that our competitors are circulating untrue and defamatory rumours to Quectel’s customers and potential customers,” said Muhrer. “We will continue to vigorously defend ourselves against any false claims by competitors, and we will not tolerate untrue and defamatory practices targeting Quectel and its customers.”

IoT Newsdesk has asked Cavli Wireless to comment.