cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/38801109

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The Spanish Ministry of Interior has awarded a €12.3 million ($14.3 million) contract to Huawei to manage information obtained through judicial wiretaps [...] Such cooperation between an EU-member state and a technology company central to the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) normalisation of censorship and surveillance technology around the world must be opposed.

[...]

Spain contracts the use of high-performance Huawei OceanStor 6800 V5 servers to store and classify information obtained by Spanish security agencies.

The deal follows from existing cooperation between the Spanish government and Huawei to provide technical support to SITEL, Spain’s system for telecommunications interception. Previously, The Objective reported that Spain’s National Police Corps and Civil Guard have partnered with Huawei technologies despite having never conducted the required security certification process with the National Intelligence Centre.

Right group ARTICLE 19’s Head of Global China Programme Michael Caster, commented: 

‘Spain should know better than to partner, at any stage of its tech stack, with techno-authoritarian China, well-documented for deploying sophisticated rights-abusing surveillance tools and technologies against its own population, including in the commission of crimes against humanity in Xinjiang. No rights-minded democratic state should be facilitating the international normalisation of Chinese surveillance technology.’

[...]

The risk of Huawei sending potentially sensitive information back to China is not unfounded. For example, in 2018 French newspaper Le Monde first reported that confidential network data from the African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa had been mysteriously uploaded to servers in Shanghai every night at the same time between 2012 and 2017. Huawei was the primary supplier for the organisation’s computer system, although the company refuted surveillance claims.

Beyond legal requirements to comply with censorship and surveillance demands, China compels its national technology champions, like Huawei, to ‘unswervingly follow the Party’. This directive arises from the 2020 Party Central Committee Opinions on Strengthening the United Front Work of the Private Economy in the New Era, which directs Chinese companies to safeguard national interests and promote a positive image of the country. Such directives are part of the CCP’s capture of the private sector, compelling compliance with Information and Communication Technology laws noted above and support for broader information manipulation efforts.

Such concerns are compounded when taken together with rising transnational repression from China targeting overseas Chinese communities, including through the manipulation of Interpol Red Notice, exploitation of extradition treaties, or other law enforcement cooperation. ARTICLE 19’s recent report on China’s transnational repression of protest documents numerous cases across the EU, while others including Spain-based Safeguard Defenders have highlighted cases in Spain, such as China’s overseas police stations in Madrid.

[...]

Despite obvious human rights risks, Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has been notably favourable to Huawei, defending the company in public, and permitting Huawei to operate research centres in Madrid. He has been critical of EU efforts to prevent Huawei from Europe’s 5G infrastructure – a stark contrast to the European Union’s cybersecurity of 5G networks toolbox for risk mitigation measures, which explicitly calls for prohibition of ‘high-risk’ suppliers such as Huawei.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/38794024

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The U.S. Federal Communications Commission said on Wednesday it plans to adopt rules to bar companies from connecting undersea submarine communication cables to the United States that include Chinese technology or equipment.

"We have seen submarine cable infrastructure threatened in recent years by foreign adversaries, like China," FCC Chair Brendan Carr said in a statement. "We are therefore taking action here to guard our submarine cables against foreign adversary ownership, and access as well as cyber and physical threats."

[...]

The FCC will also seek comment on additional measures to protect submarine cable security against foreign adversary equipment. The cutting of two fiber-optic undersea telecommunication cables in the Baltic Sea prompted investigations of possible sabotage.

In 2023 Taiwan accused two Chinese vessels of cutting the only two cables that support internet access on the Matsu Islands and Houthi attacks in the Red Sea may have been responsible for the cutting of three cables providing internet service to Europe and Asia.

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The U.S. Federal Communications Commission said on Wednesday it plans to adopt rules to bar companies from connecting undersea submarine communication cables to the United States that include Chinese technology or equipment.

"We have seen submarine cable infrastructure threatened in recent years by foreign adversaries, like China," FCC Chair Brendan Carr said in a statement. "We are therefore taking action here to guard our submarine cables against foreign adversary ownership, and access as well as cyber and physical threats."

[...]

The FCC will also seek comment on additional measures to protect submarine cable security against foreign adversary equipment. The cutting of two fiber-optic undersea telecommunication cables in the Baltic Sea prompted investigations of possible sabotage.

In 2023 Taiwan accused two Chinese vessels of cutting the only two cables that support internet access on the Matsu Islands and Houthi attacks in the Red Sea may have been responsible for the cutting of three cables providing internet service to Europe and Asia.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/38773576

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A DoD report warns that China-nexus hacking group Salt Typhoon breached a U.S. state’s Army National Guard network from March to December 2024. The APT stole network configs, admin credentials, and data exchanged with units across all U.S. states and several territories. This info could help future hacks and weaken state-level defenses against Chinese cyberattacks during crises, posing serious risks to U.S. critical infrastructure.

“A recent compromise of a US state’s Army National Guard network by People’s Republic of China (PRC)-associated cyber actors—publicly tracked as Salt Typhoon—likely provided Beijing with data that could facilitate thehacking of other states’ Army National Guard units, and possibly many of their state-level cybersecurity partners. If thePRC-associated cyber actors that conducted the hack succeeded in the latter, it could hamstring state-level cybersecuritypartners’ ability to defend US critical infrastructure against PRC cyber campaigns in the event of a crisis or conflict.” reads a report first seen by NBC News.

The report includes details on the tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPS) used by Salt Typhoon, along with a guidance to help National Guard and state governments detect, prevent, and mitigate this threat.

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A DoD report warns that China-nexus hacking group Salt Typhoon breached a U.S. state’s Army National Guard network from March to December 2024. The APT stole network configs, admin credentials, and data exchanged with units across all U.S. states and several territories. This info could help future hacks and weaken state-level defenses against Chinese cyberattacks during crises, posing serious risks to U.S. critical infrastructure.

“A recent compromise of a US state’s Army National Guard network by People’s Republic of China (PRC)-associated cyber actors—publicly tracked as Salt Typhoon—likely provided Beijing with data that could facilitate thehacking of other states’ Army National Guard units, and possibly many of their state-level cybersecurity partners. If thePRC-associated cyber actors that conducted the hack succeeded in the latter, it could hamstring state-level cybersecuritypartners’ ability to defend US critical infrastructure against PRC cyber campaigns in the event of a crisis or conflict.” reads a report first seen by NBC News.

The report includes details on the tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPS) used by Salt Typhoon, along with a guidance to help National Guard and state governments detect, prevent, and mitigate this threat.

[Op-ed by Denis Mikhailov, a lawyer who used to lead Alexei Navalny's St Petersburg campaign office. He was granted asylum in Poland.]

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[...]

There is evidence that Russia fully understands that it cannot completely ignore international legal norms without consequences. That is why the Kremlin officially demands the cancellation of reparations and war-related payments for Ukraine, as well as the lifting of all sanctions imposed on the country in connection with its war against Ukraine.

But still, Moscow continues its legal nihilism. This poses the challenge of how the international community should respond to a nuclear power that rejects any legal obligation that does not serve its interests. This question extends far beyond Ukraine or internal repression. It threatens the very foundations of the international order — a system based on obligations, accountability and universally accepted human rights principles.

[...]

I personally know dozens of Russians — former political prisoners, activists and victims of police violence — whose cases were ruled on in Strasbourg, with Russia found guilty. These individuals have not had their names cleared, received compensation for their suffering, nor received official recognition of the injustice they endured. Russia has not only refused to implement these decisions but has also blocked any domestic path to legal rehabilitation.

[...]

A path to achieving justice would be to funnel frozen Russian assets held abroad into a compensation fund from which victims can receive the restitution the ECHR says they are owed. Kremlin officials have already threatened a “severe” response if these assets are seized, which shows that the Kremlin views them as sufficiently important that they could be used to put pressure on the leadership.

[...]

If the international community chooses to ignore Russia’s violations, it will send a dangerous signal that authoritarian regimes can break the rules with impunity.

[...]

Making Russia pay does not necessarily mean the rapid democratization of the country. Smaller-scale achievements are more likely but no less essential: the release of political prisoners and easing of domestic repressions are more likely but no less essential. They could build up to an end to current military aggression and a return to the international legal fold.

[...]

Exerting pressure on Russia today is not an act of hostility — it is an act of systemic defense: of rights, institutions, security and human dignity. This responsibility lies not only with politicians and diplomats, but also with human rights defenders, analysts, civil society activists and journalists. Their efforts are the building blocks of a future just world.

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Czech President Petr Pavel on Thursday signed an amendment to the country’s criminal code that criminalises the promotion of communist ideology, placing it on the same footing as Nazi propaganda.

The revised legislation introduces prison sentences of up to five years for anyone who “establishes, supports or promotes Nazi, communist, or other movements which demonstrably aim to suppress human rights and freedoms or incite racial, ethnic, national, religious or class-based hatred.”

The change follows calls from Czech historical institutions, including the Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes, to correct what they viewed as a legal imbalance.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/38772752

There is no question about Taiwan’s status today. Only an authoritarian regime’s denial of a reality its ideology finds inconvenient.

[Op-ed by Roy Chun Lee, Taiwan's Ambassador to the EU and Belgium.]

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[...]

Over the past 130 years, the people of Taiwan have cultivated a unique identity with a multicultural heritage, drawing not only from Chinese influences but also from the Dutch, Spanish, Japanese, and Taiwan's indigenous peoples, who are widely regarded to be the origin of all Austronesian cultures. Like the identity-building process of most European countries, Taiwan's journey has been a mixture of darkness and light, suffering and joy, struggle and triumph.

Yet these elements are exactly what make the Taiwanese identity unique and render it a special, like-minded partner to Europe and the world, with or without formal diplomatic recognition.

[...]

Unfortunately, instead of applauding Taiwan, the PRC has continually employed every available method to deny the existence of Taiwan. One of the most frequently used tools is to distort the meaning of UN Resolution 2758, arguing that the Resolution reflects a global consensus that Taiwan is part of the PRC.

This is fake news. The following is a direct quotation from a speech delivered by European Commissioner Nicolas Schmit, on behalf of EU High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell in October 2024: “United Nations Resolution 2758 is very short - only 150 words. And among those 150 words, the word ‘Taiwan’ does not appear. The resolution switched representation in the United Nations from the ‘representatives of Chiang Kai-shek’ to the ‘representatives of the Government of the People’s Republic of China’”.

In short, Resolution 2758 provides no legal basis for the PRC to claim ownership of Taiwan or to deny the fact that Taiwan has existed as a sovereign, independent, and meaningful country for the last 75 years.

[...]

Europe can help deter coercion in the Taiwan Strait.

• First, face the facts: Taiwan is a democracy whose sovereignty is exercised and enjoyed every day by its 23 million people. No amount of propaganda can erase that reality.

• Second, expose and resist coercion: Call out and reject the PRC’s disinformation campaigns, economic blackmail, and military intimidation whenever and wherever they appear.

• And third, invest in partnership: Expand trade, technology, security dialogues, and cultural exchanges with Taiwan, so that shared values can become shared resilience.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/38772752

There is no question about Taiwan’s status today. Only an authoritarian regime’s denial of a reality its ideology finds inconvenient.

[Op-ed by Roy Chun Lee, Taiwan's Ambassador to the EU and Belgium.]

Archived

[...]

Over the past 130 years, the people of Taiwan have cultivated a unique identity with a multicultural heritage, drawing not only from Chinese influences but also from the Dutch, Spanish, Japanese, and Taiwan's indigenous peoples, who are widely regarded to be the origin of all Austronesian cultures. Like the identity-building process of most European countries, Taiwan's journey has been a mixture of darkness and light, suffering and joy, struggle and triumph.

Yet these elements are exactly what make the Taiwanese identity unique and render it a special, like-minded partner to Europe and the world, with or without formal diplomatic recognition.

[...]

Unfortunately, instead of applauding Taiwan, the PRC has continually employed every available method to deny the existence of Taiwan. One of the most frequently used tools is to distort the meaning of UN Resolution 2758, arguing that the Resolution reflects a global consensus that Taiwan is part of the PRC.

This is fake news. The following is a direct quotation from a speech delivered by European Commissioner Nicolas Schmit, on behalf of EU High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell in October 2024: “United Nations Resolution 2758 is very short - only 150 words. And among those 150 words, the word ‘Taiwan’ does not appear. The resolution switched representation in the United Nations from the ‘representatives of Chiang Kai-shek’ to the ‘representatives of the Government of the People’s Republic of China’”.

In short, Resolution 2758 provides no legal basis for the PRC to claim ownership of Taiwan or to deny the fact that Taiwan has existed as a sovereign, independent, and meaningful country for the last 75 years.

[...]

Europe can help deter coercion in the Taiwan Strait.

• First, face the facts: Taiwan is a democracy whose sovereignty is exercised and enjoyed every day by its 23 million people. No amount of propaganda can erase that reality.

• Second, expose and resist coercion: Call out and reject the PRC’s disinformation campaigns, economic blackmail, and military intimidation whenever and wherever they appear.

• And third, invest in partnership: Expand trade, technology, security dialogues, and cultural exchanges with Taiwan, so that shared values can become shared resilience.

[...]

There is no question about Taiwan’s status today. Only an authoritarian regime’s denial of a reality its ideology finds inconvenient.

[Op-ed by Roy Chun Lee, Taiwan's Ambassador to the EU and Belgium.]

Archived

[...]

Over the past 130 years, the people of Taiwan have cultivated a unique identity with a multicultural heritage, drawing not only from Chinese influences but also from the Dutch, Spanish, Japanese, and Taiwan's indigenous peoples, who are widely regarded to be the origin of all Austronesian cultures. Like the identity-building process of most European countries, Taiwan's journey has been a mixture of darkness and light, suffering and joy, struggle and triumph.

Yet these elements are exactly what make the Taiwanese identity unique and render it a special, like-minded partner to Europe and the world, with or without formal diplomatic recognition.

[...]

Unfortunately, instead of applauding Taiwan, the PRC has continually employed every available method to deny the existence of Taiwan. One of the most frequently used tools is to distort the meaning of UN Resolution 2758, arguing that the Resolution reflects a global consensus that Taiwan is part of the PRC.

This is fake news. The following is a direct quotation from a speech delivered by European Commissioner Nicolas Schmit, on behalf of EU High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell in October 2024: “United Nations Resolution 2758 is very short - only 150 words. And among those 150 words, the word ‘Taiwan’ does not appear. The resolution switched representation in the United Nations from the ‘representatives of Chiang Kai-shek’ to the ‘representatives of the Government of the People’s Republic of China’”.

In short, Resolution 2758 provides no legal basis for the PRC to claim ownership of Taiwan or to deny the fact that Taiwan has existed as a sovereign, independent, and meaningful country for the last 75 years.

[...]

Europe can help deter coercion in the Taiwan Strait.

• First, face the facts: Taiwan is a democracy whose sovereignty is exercised and enjoyed every day by its 23 million people. No amount of propaganda can erase that reality.

• Second, expose and resist coercion: Call out and reject the PRC’s disinformation campaigns, economic blackmail, and military intimidation whenever and wherever they appear.

• And third, invest in partnership: Expand trade, technology, security dialogues, and cultural exchanges with Taiwan, so that shared values can become shared resilience.

[...]

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/38743139

Op-ed by Dr Ausma Bernot, Lecturer in Criminology at the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Griffith University.

[...]

Although security cameras make up only 5 percent of Enterprise Internet of Things (IoT) devices, they account for 33 percent of all security issues. Two Chinese suppliers – Hikvision and Dahua – dominate international markets

[...]

The geopolitical misalignment between China and European countries adds urgency to the need to address these national security risks. This is because large Chinese manufacturers are supported by the Chinese government, and emergent evidence shows that 80 percent of sanctions circumventions against Russia are facilitated by China, with 80 percent of dual-use goods routed through China.

These vulnerabilities are a concern for individuals, enterprises, and government entities alike. Evidence of illegal camera hacking that we have available indicates that individuals are often targeted for personal or for-profit streaming of camera footage. Moreover, when surveillance cameras are installed in critical locations, such as federal or state government buildings, the likelihood of that location becoming a surveillance target increases.

[...]

There are three types of risks associated with surveillance cameras: targeted surveillance of individuals, national security risks, and exploitation of network security vulnerabilities. Unwanted individual surveillance most often occurs in the form of covert or overt hacking of individual cameras. Hacked cameras have been used to record and sell child exploitation material, as well as video recordings from gynecologists’ offices and locker rooms. Individual users should connect cameras to their own private networks and monitor the number of connected devices.

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Numerous cases of surveillance camera exploitation have made it clear that these risks are well-documented. A few particularly alarming incidents highlight how these devices can be weaponized for foreign interference and surveillance of vulnerable populations.

[...]

Although cameras are devices that were created to enhance environmental security, they have now introduced new security concerns due to their technical shortcomings and social applications. Establishing robust security standards is essential for IP cameras used in government buildings, business premises, and individual homes. Against this background, the EU’s Cyber Resilience Act that will place greater responsibility on manufacturers and distributors to produce and supply more secure devices, is a step in the right direction.