Why China Is Investigating Microsoft and Symantec

For years, U.S. politicians have been calling Chinese telecom-equipment makers Huawei Technologies and ZTE threats to American security. But making charges about national security is a game that China can play, too. Following Edward Snowden’s disclosures of U.S. spying, the Chinese government seems eager to show American companies that they will pay a price for U.S. government actions.

That’s a lesson that Microsoft and Symantec are learning now. An antivirus company from Silicon Valley, Symantec competes in China against local favorites such as Beijing-based Qihoo 360 Technology. According to reports by Bloomberg News and the Chinese media, China has instructed government departments to stop buying antivirus software by Symantec and its Moscow-based rival, Kaspersky Lab. Symantec software has back doors that could allow outside access, according to an order from the Public Security Ministry. Not coincidentally, Qihoo’s New York-traded shares rose 2.7 percent on Monday, following reports of the move against Symantec and Kaspersky.