Information/Technology - 6. page

Singapore’s primary Chinese language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao recently reported that the British Cabinet Office will ask all government departments to remove surveillance cameras produced by Chinese companies to stop potential intelligence gathering by the Chinese government. When announcing this decision, the Cabinet Office also mentioned that a timetable will be announced for various departments to follow in order to remove surveillance cameras installed in sensitive places. The British government did not name specific Chinese companies, only saying that surveillance cameras produced by companies subject to China’s National Intelligence Law must be removed. Two people familiar with the matter said that the order is aimed at Hikvision and Dahua, two of China’s largest surveillance camera makers. Cabinet Office Minister Jeremy Quin said the new measures would protect sensitive sectors of the UK from companies that could threaten UK national security and would act as a firm deterrent against hostile acts wishing to harm the UK. He announced the measures as he proposed a series of new amendments to the government’s procurement act, including the creation of a new unit to investigate suppliers who may pose a risk to UK national security and assess whether to ban these companies from public procurement. At least a third of the police forces in England and Wales use surveillance cameras made by Hikvision. Hikvision responded by saying its products have no security issues.

Source: Lianhe Zaobao, June 7, 2023
https://www.kzaobao.com/shiju/20230607/140427.html

Global Times recently reported that the Japanese government officially introduced export control measures for semiconductor manufacturing equipment, which will be implemented on July 23. China’s Ministry of Commerce responded on the same day that this is an abuse of export control measures and a serious departure from free trade and international economic and trade rules. China firmly opposes this. Japan announced in late March this year that it would amend the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Law to strengthen export controls on 23 items of chip manufacturing equipment in an effort to “cooperate with the United States to prevent technology from flowing to China and being transferred to military use.” According to the Japanese Ministry of the Economy, Trade and Industry, the restricted scope includes semiconductor cleaning, thin film deposition, heat treatment, etching, product inspection and more.The Japanese Minister of the Economy, Trade and Industry Yasutoshi Nishimura previously stated that “this is not aimed at any specific country.” However, considering the latest export management trends of countries related to semiconductor manufacturing equipment, public opinion believes that this is a measure against China. While Japan’s restrictions on semiconductors are less extensive than in the United States, about ten Japanese manufacturers will be affected to some extent by the new rules. The spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce of China stated that the measures announced will seriously damage the interests of Chinese and Japanese companies, seriously damage the Sino-Japanese economic and trade cooperation, disrupt the global semiconductor industry structure, and impact the stability of the global industrial supply chain.

Sources:
(1) Global Times, May 24, 2023
https://3w.huanqiu.com/a/de583b/4D17o6aPvPe?agt=11
(2) Xinhua, May 23, 2023
http://www.news.cn/fortune/2023-05/23/c_1129640086.htm

Major Taiwanese newspaper China Times recently reported that the Austrian Federal Interior Minister, Gerhard Karner, announced that the government will ban civil servants from using the Chinese-owned short video sharing application TikTok on their official mobile phones. This means another country joins the growing list of those who have banned the use of TikTok, Including the United Kingdom, the United States and several European Union (EU) member states. Many Western countries have banned the use of TikTok on official devices based on national security concerns. The EU’s two largest decision-making bodies also imposed a ban on TikTok in March. When Gerhard Karner was interviewed before the regular weekly cabinet meeting today, he was asked whether Austrian government officials could continue to use TikTok. He told reporters that official mobile phone use will be banned. However, using TikTok with private mobile phones outside the federal network is still possible. TikTok is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. It is under scrutiny from a number of governments and regulators amid concerns that the Chinese government could use the app to collect user data or advance its own interests.

Source: China Times, May 11, 2023
https://www.chinatimes.com/cn/realtimenews/20230510006402-260408?chdtv

Hong Kong Economic Times (HKET), the leading financial daily in Hong Kong, recently reported that, German Interior Minister Nancy Farser said the ministry is checking all Chinese components already installed in Germany’s 5G network. The practice is to protect the country’s communications network. The three priorities of the inspection are to identify risks, avoid crises and avoid dependencies. She emphasized that relevant inspection is particularly important for key 5G network infrastructure. This could be an important move by German authorities to deal with security concerns. Domestic German media earlier quoted sources as saying that Berlin is considering banning certain components from Chinese companies such as Huawei and ZTE in the telecommunications network. The Ministry of the Interior later denied it, emphasizing that it only comprehensively reviewed all suppliers to avoid over-reliance on individual suppliers. The Chinese embassy in Germany responded that China firmly opposes Germany’s generalization of the national security concept, abusing state power to interfere in the free market, and undermining the principle of fair competition.

Source: HKET, April 16, 2023
https://bit.ly/41AvDUC