British government departments were ordered Thursday to stop installing Chinese-made surveillance cameras at “sensitive sites.”
This decision was announced in a context of greater firmness shown by London towards China and its companies for security reasons. Last week the government ordered a British-owned company to sell its shares in Britain’s top semiconductor maker.
According to civil liberties group Big Brother Watch, most British public bodies use CCTV cameras made by Chinese companies Hikvision or Dahua.
It is not a prohibition but an incentive
In July, a group of 67 MPs and Lords (members of the upper house) urged London to ban the sale and use of surveillance equipment produced by these two companies, some of which allegedly contributed to human rights abuses. of the Uyghur minority in Xinjiang.
The government does not go as far as to completely ban these companies. But it discourages the use in the UK of “visual surveillance systems” made by companies required by Beijing to share intelligence with Chinese security services.
No such cameras should be connected to the “core networks” of government departments and departments should consider replacing them rather than wait for planned upgrades, according to UK authorities.
No cameras in sensitive sites
A government inquiry concluded that “in light of the threat to the UK and the increasing capacity and connectivity of these systems, additional controls were needed,” Minister Oliver Dowden told Parliament.
“Therefore, ministries have been instructed to suspend the deployment of such equipment to sensitive sites, when it is produced by companies subject to the National Intelligence Law of the PRC.”
Source: BFM TV
