Huawei says it won't be bullied into creating backdoors for Chinese government

Given the unwanted attention Huawei has been receiving for its alleged ties to the Chinese government and the snooping this would imply, it seems reasonable that the company’s chairman will try to defend its legitimacy.

One of the primary concerns directed at the Chinese telecommunications giant is that it would be required to adhere to its local government’s laws, even when practising abroad, which would theoretically allow the Chinese government to gather data on international customers via its products.

In a recent discussion with reporters, Huawei Chairman Liang Hua was asked if the company would adhere to the government’s hypothetical demand to employ a backdoor in its products, to which Hua stated it would “not execute that request”.

Furthermore, Mr Hua stated that Huawei had sought independent legal advice on the matter and found that it was under no obligation to adhere to the Chinese government's wishes if it were to request a backdoor, which it apparently hasn’t done thus far.

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Banned together

Huawei’s 5G technology has faced challenges in the US and New Zealand, been banned from being used in Australia, and could soon share a similar fate in the UK, pending a decision. The most recent pleas of innocence have been made during a press event in Canada, in the hope that the country will not be more forgiving than some of its fellow Five Eyes allies.

It was only a few months ago that the Huawei CFO was arrested in Canada, facing charges of fraud, and another company employee faced allegations of espionage in Poland. Needless to say that Huawei is seeking to shift its global opinion into a more positive light in order to sell its advanced telecommunication technology to countries outside of Asia.

“At the end of the day, we hope the decisions on 5G can be based on technology instead of other factors”, Mr Hua said.