Albania Joins US ‘the Clean Network’, Pledges Not to Use Huawei 5G
Albania has joined a US State Department initiative called ‘The Clean Network’ which will address long-term threats to data privacy, security, and human rights allegedly posed by the Chinese Communist Party.
Secretary of State Michael Pompeo said that the US has
“urged countries to become Clean Countries so that their citizens’ private
information doesn’t end up in the hands of the Chinese Communist Party.
US Ambassador Yuri Kim then announced on Twitter that
Albania had joined the initiative.
Notably, the network excludes members from utilising any 5G
services from “untrusted IT vendors” including Huawei and ZTE. The 5G Clean
Path is described as an “end-to-end communication path that doesn’t use any
transmission, control, computing, or storage equipment” from any of these companies.
“The 5G Clean Path embodies the highest standards of
security against untrusted, high-risk vendors’ ability to disrupt, manipulate
or deny services to private citizens, financial institutions, or critical
infrastructure. All mobile data traffic entering American diplomatic systems
will be subject to new, stringent requirements.”
The initiative will also ensure that Chinese carriers are
not connected with US telecoms networks. The State Department said that these
companies post a danger to US security and should not be involved with US
telecommunications.
Untrusted applications will also be removed from US mobile
app stores. On August 6, President Trump signed two executive orders to address
threats posed by TikTok and WeChat. It will also prevent untrusted Chinese
manufacturers from pre-installing or making available untrusted apps on their
stores.
The press release called Huawei “an arm of the PRC
surveillance state” and said that US companies should remove their apps from
Huawei’s app store “to ensure they are not partnering with a human rights
abuser.”
It will also prevent US citizens and Clean Countries
citizens data being stored and processed on cloud-based systems created by
Alibaba, Baidu, China Mobile, China Telecom, and Tencent.
Other countries that have joined the initiative include
Australia, Canada, France, Greece, Israel, Sweden, the UK, and Vietnam.
Telekom Albania CEO Emil Georgakiev said:
“5G networks will play a critical role in the lives of
individuals and business, with any malfunction of infrastructure or leakage of
data having a devastating impact on society. That’s why Telekom Albania
continues to show its commitment to the highest standards of network security
for our customers and our partners by using only trusted equipment. We are
proud to be a 5G Clean Path partner.”
Huawei has recently found themselves banned or restricted
from operating in a growing number of countries due to the perceived threat of
espionage. Under Chinese law, any company, even if they operate abroad, is
required to hand over data to the government upon request. This led to fears
that Huawei smartphones, networks,
equipment and 5G networks could be used for spying and harvesting data of other
countries citizens.
In addition to this, Huawei, staff members, and affiliated
companies have been charged with bank fraud, stealing trade secrets, flouting
US sanctions on Iran, wire fraud, money laundering, conspiracy, and obstruction
of justice. Several employees have also been arrested on charges of espionage.
Serbia however, has been working on the implementation of a
project with Huawei for smart surveillance cameras that are able to recognise
objects and faces. Concerns have been raised over constitutional violations, threats
to privacy and possible human rights infringements.
Comments
Post a Comment