Australia To Remove China-Made Security Cameras From Government Buildings

Australia's government buildings will soon be purged of China-made security cameras.

The Australian Defense Department announced it would soon rip out the many China-made security devices from government buildings due to national security concerns.

The Australian Department's move comes after the US and the UK's banning of them for fears they may contain spyware, per ABC Australia.

Australia's Chinese-made Security Camera Purge Details

The Australian Government's Defense Department's move to remove Chinese-made security devices due to Australia's Shadow Minister for Cybersecurity's six-month audit.

The audit targeted security devices built by companies linked to the Chinese government within the country's government buildings. Based on the audit's findings, the Defense Department has been urged to remove these security devices, which were made by Chinese companies Hikvision and Dahua, due to fears they may contain spyware.

These devices include security cameras, access control systems, and intercoms used in the country's various government buildings, per Gizmodo.

According to Sen. James Paterson, also the opposition cybersecurity spokesman, Hikvision and Dahua have "a very close relationship" with the Chinese Communist Party. As such, they are subject to China's National Intelligence laws, per CNN.

Under the said law, all Chinese companies and individuals are required by the government to secretly cooperate with Chinese intelligence agencies if requested.

Interestingly, Paterson noted that the Australian government couldn't determine how many security devices were in the country's government buildings. However, after the audit, the Defense Department found more than 900 Chinese-made security devices in the country's government buildings, which were found on more than 200 buildings.

The number of security cameras found to be made by Chinese companies means that almost every department had a Chinese-made security device except the Prime Minister and Cabinet and the Agriculture Department.

Paterson mentioned that the government urgently needs a plan to "rip every one of these devices out of Australian government departments and agencies."

Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles, on the other hand, mentioned that his department is assessing all its surveillance technology to determine if they are to be removed or not.

"There is an issue here and we're going to deal with it," he added.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning criticized Australia's decision to remove the security devices as it is an example of an abuse of state power to suppress and discriminate against Chinese companies, per the Associated Press.

In addition, the spokesperson called the move a wrongful practice that "overstretch the concept of national security."

Following Suit

Australia's decision to remove security devices made by Hikvision and Dahua from their government buildings follows the US and UK's decision to ban them due to unacceptable current and future national security risks.

Much like Australia, the two countries are worried that the Chinese government is forcing these companies to hand over sensitive data when asked to do so.

Paterson added that Australia has no way of knowing if the sensitive information, images, and audio collected by these devices are being sent back to China against the interests of Australian citizens.

Diplomatic relations between China and Australia first soured when the latter country's capital, Canberra, banned Huawei from its 5G network in 2018, per the BBC. China responded with trade restrictions and tariffs on Australian exports like coal, lobsters, and wine.