Pentagon makes a pig's ear of trusted chips

Can only support two per cent of its secure needs.

After six years of trying to break free from its dependence on global chipmakers, the US military still has to buy 98 per cent of its integrated circuits from outside companies.

The Pentagon had decided it was more secure if it built its own chips in secure facilities run by American companies.

But for some reason, despite its best efforts, the Pentagon has found that it can only meet two per cent of its needs using this system.

Now it fears that because it is buying too much off-the-shelf technology, the same viruses that drag people unwillingly to porn sites might drag cruise missiles off course.

The problem has become more noticeable as the major chip makers shift fabs offshore to exploit cheaper labour in foreign countries.

The New York Times points out that only a fifth of all computer chips are now made in the United States and only a quarter of the chips based on the most advanced technologies are built there.

But the Pentagon and the National Security Agency are trying to expand significantly the number of American plants authorised to manufacture chips for the Pentagon's Trusted Foundry program.

However the United States lacks the ability to fulfill the capacity requirements needed to manufacture computer chips for classified systems.

The US defence establishment has rushed to defend its manufacturing strategy which involves a 10-year contract with Big Blue and a certification process that has been extended to 28 American chipmakers and related technology firms.

As with everything the US military-industrial complex does, it seems to involve spending lots of cash. But it's still not filling the country's defence insecurity hole.