Huawei Technologies has pledged its commitment to cybersecurity, and in the name of increasing effectiveness in combating cyberattacks, urges for common standards to be used and more sharing of information on threats.
To this end, Huawei has released its so-called “Product Cyber Security Baseline” framework which is drawn from its own experience in product security management and incorporates a broad range of external regulations, technical standards, and regulatory requirements.
“The more knowledge and best practices we share, the more effective we can to strengthen cybersecurity as a community,” says Ken Hu, Huawei’s rotating chairman.
“Cybersecurity is complex, it is an evolving challenge, requiring close collaboration and information sharing,” says Hu, warning that there’s a lot more work to be done.
He points out that the cybersecurity industry still lacks a common standards base, which might hamper the coordination of approaches especially when it comes to government certifications and collaborations.
Hu was speaking on June 9 at the opening of its largest Global Cyber Security and Privacy Protection Transparency Center in Dongguan, a city adjacent to its Shenzhen headquarters. Since 2010, Huawei has opened six other centres, including Germany, Canada, Belgium and the UK.
“While we are depending more on digital technologies across the world, cybersecurity is becoming more important than before,” says Hu.
He notes that with growing incidents of cyberattacks, all industries, governments and regulatory bodies are taking cybersecurity more seriously. Over the past few years, 108 new laws and regulations of various kinds have been introduced in 151 countries. “That’s incredible progress,” he says.
According to Hu, cybersecurity is a top priority in Huawei’s approach to doing business. “We share this responsibility with our customers to make sure the equipment is safe and secure and we’re proud of what we’ve achieved,” says Hu.
Hu says that the guiding principles underpinning these cybersecurity centres are that trust and distrust should be based on fact, not feeling, not speculation, not baseless rumours. “Facts must be verifiable, verification must be based on standards,” he says.
According to Hu, the Dongguan centre will serve several functions. First, it can demonstrate what are the solutions available and share Huawei’s experience in this field. This will facilitate communication and joint innovation.
In addition, the centre can provide a platform for security verification. As Hu puts it, the centre is designed to support stakeholders from around the world, where they can understand and test Huawei’s products and find ways to collaborate.
However, given the ongoing geopolitical friction, Huawei isn’t always trusted. In his address, Hu, without naming names, notes that there’s a misconception that the country of origin affects the security of the equipment. “This is simply not true,” says Hu.
Last July, the UK government ordered the complete removal of Huawei’s installed equipment from its entire 5G network by 2027, amid pressure from the US. Initially, UK had decided Huawei equipment should be removed from so-called “core” parts of the networks.
