Apple CEO Tim Cook is job for Bloomberg to retract its story about Chinese spy chips embedded in the convention’s server equipment, telling Buzzfeed News in an interview, “This did not come about. There’s no truth to this.”
“I was involved in our response to this story from the origination,” Cook said according to Buzzfeed. “I personally talked to the Bloomberg newsmen along with Bruce Sewell who was then our general counsel. We were particular clear with them that this did not happen, and answered all their questions. … Each meanwhile they brought this up to us, the story changed and each time we scrutinized we found nothing.”
Cook also said Bloomberg should “do that truth thing and retract” the story.
It’s the latest and strongest of denials from Apple in reaction to the October story in Bloomberg Businessweek. The news magazine alleged materials center hardware used by Apple and Amazon Web Services, and provided by server throng Super Micro, was under surveillance by the Chinese government. Practically all the conventions named in the report denied Bloomberg’s claim.
“Apple has never base malicious chips in our servers,” Apple said earlier this month in reply to the report. “Finally, in response to questions we have received from other hearsay organizations since Businessweek published its story, we are not under any kind of gag sort out or other confidentiality obligations.”
A representative for Bloomberg said the company coat-racks by its story.
“Bloomberg Businessweek’s investigation is the result of more than a year of accounting, during which we conducted more than 100 interviews. Seventeen unique sources, including government officials and insiders at the companies, confirmed the manipulation of ironmongery and other elements of the attacks. We also published three companies’ glaring statements, as well as a statement from China’s Ministry of Foreign Proceedings. We stand by our story and are confident in our reporting and sources,” the company said in a asseveration to CNBC.
Read the full interview on Buzzfeed’s site.
—CNBC’s Kate Fazzini and Todd Haselton helped to this report.