“You are correct in that there are no trojans, or secret backdoors.”
Wrong!
Almost anything connected to a computer can execute a back door trojan. Even a USB plug can host an embedded firmware trojan.
Without going into details ... something as "New" as USB1.0 is typically just procured through a COTS channel. Just buy a F3I inspection on a new Motherboard - and you are off running again. Just order a new motherboard from Asus, Dell, Foxconn, Intel or whereever. These have very reliable supply chains - practically no threat. And even *if* there were, the secure networks are physically and virtually seperated from non-secure networks.
The Chicom fakes are things like resistors, capacitors, obsolete UV-erasable PROMS, 8 bit microprocessors, logic gates. If they are as "new" as 20 yrs ago, the odds are that they can and will be procured from a reliable supplier.
The Military only goes through the aftermarket on components that are 'obsolete'. You are not at risk for a "trojan" from a capacitor, resistor or a choke. For starters, there is no way to know 'where' that device is going to be located, what OS the device will run, if that device is even digital - we have quite a bit of analog in these old systems.
Did you know that the Chicoms also make fake toothpaste as well? Anything that can be made and sold at a profit is a target for counterfeiting. Watches, cell phones, iPods, iPads, jeans, perfume, brake pads, car batteries, computer components, monitors, jelly beans - the list is endless.
“Even a USB plug can host an embedded firmware trojan”
Easily done, I made up a gag USB cable once. I put a sm ATtiny85 inside the molded connector. I drilled it out and very carefully put the sm chip and two 3.6v zeners in there along with a few other tiny sm parts. Then I filled the hole using JB weld and spray painted the molded housing to make it look normal again.
When you plugged the thing in it was detected as a keyboard.
It would type odd things at random times :-) lol
Would be child’s play to create something similar that was sinister.