Multiple U.S. government agencies have announced that they have stopped using the PDF software produced by the Chinese company Foxit. Several departments, including the U.S. State Department and military units, have previously used the software, leading analysts to raise concerns about national security.
Founded in 2001 by Eugene Xiong in Fuzhou, China, Foxit has a subsidiary in Fremont, California and is listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
The company developed software for reading, editing, and converting PDF files, with customers ranging from businesses to various U.S. government agencies.
Foxit’s website once listed several U.S. federal agency clients, including the Missile Defense Agency (MDA), the State Department, Army, Navy, Air Force, Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), U.S. courts, and Department of Transportation.
However, when Fox News inquired about its relationship with the U.S. and China, the company quickly deleted all related information and did not respond to any questions.
Multiple U.S. government departments have confirmed that they have terminated contracts with Foxit or removed its software from their systems.
An MDA spokesperson stated that Foxit was only used on an “isolated network not connected to any operational missile defense systems” and emphasized that it is “no longer in any MDA systems.”
A State Department official revealed that there were small contracts in the past but they have been terminated.
A DHS source explicitly stated that Foxit is now “definitely included in our list of banned software.”
The U.S. Department of Justice also confirmed that it removed Foxit following a security review last year. The FDA did not respond to whether they are still using it, while the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) did not confirm their current status.
On its U.S. website, Foxit highlights its headquarters in California and its “global” impact, without mentioning its listing in China. However, on the Chinese version of the website, Foxit emphasizes clients including the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, National Intellectual Property Administration, and National Standardization Administration.
In 2023, it announced a partnership with the Central Radio and Television Station, which falls under the Chinese Communist Party’s Propaganda Department.
The Chinese website lists offices in Fuzhou, Beijing, Nanjing, Hefei, and others.
U.S. agencies typically contract with Foxit Software Inc. based in California, not its Chinese parent company, making Foxit appear to be an American company. However, the parent company is still subject to Chinese laws, including the 2017 National Intelligence Law, which requires companies to assist Chinese intelligence services when needed.
Analysts question whether this separation can truly isolate the connections between the U.S. subsidiary and the Chinese parent company.
Initially positioning itself as a low-cost alternative to Adobe Acrobat, Chinese technology observers warn that this low price may conceal risks.
Washington-based technology and telecommunications lawyer Joel Thayer stated that this approach is similar to TikTok, where the business and data are stored overseas in China but does not mention that nearly all shares are owned by a Chinese company.
He added, “Chinese companies are adept at hiding intentions through corporate documents and structures.”
Critics warn that even if Foxit does not directly handle classified documents, it could still extract valuable information from everyday data such as contract amounts, service scopes, and technical directions.
Thayer pointed out, “Even if Foxit is not used for classified documents, the information it could obtain is extremely valuable to the Chinese Communist Party.”
He further stated, “Essentially, you are betting that this platform is not secretly collecting a wealth of data about our government contracts and services in the background.”
He also emphasized, “This is priceless information for any adversary – how much a contract is worth, what services are provided, what technologies are being researched, who is employed to do what, what the government is investigating… Competitors would do anything to obtain this information.”