Security officials in the UK are concerned that the nation’s communications backbone could be at risk thanks to a piece of US-made software that is about to go out-of-date.

The software is currently being used by Chinese telecoms giant Huawei, the company responsible for supplying networking equipment for BT, Vodafone and their subsidiaries.

The problem surrounds Huawei's use of Wind River Systems' VxWorks operating system, according to three people with knowledge of the matter, who spoke anonymously to Reuters. The software will stop receiving security patches and updates in 2020, possibly leaving theWind River Systems' VxWorks operating system open to attack.

Huawei phones are banned in the US because officials believe its links to the Chinese government make the devices a security risk. In the UK, rather than blocking the company, GCHQ works closely with the Chinese firm to test its products.

However, earlier this month, a government report said it had found "shortcomings" with Huawei equipment used in the UK.

The report was written by the Huawei Cyber Security Evaluation Centre (HCSEC), which was set up in 2010 in response to concerns that BT and others' use of the firm's equipment could pose a cyber security risk.

The report did not blame Californian company Winder River System but it did say: "Third-party software, including security critical components, on various component boards will come out of existing long-term support in 2020, even though the Huawei end of life date for the products containing this component is often longer."