UK: Surrey libraries fitted with Chinese firm's CCTV despite concerns (www.bbc.com)

submitted 1 week ago by Sepia@mander.xyz to c/buyeuropean@feddit.uk

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cross-posted from: https://mander.xyz/post/54887311

Several libraries in Surrey are using CCTV cameras made by a Chinese firm whose equipment is banned from sensitive government sites over security concerns.

The cameras, made by Hikvision, are in libraries in Guildford, Ash, Chertsey, Cobham, Farnham, Merstham and New Haw, according to a Freedom of Information response to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The UK government stopped the installation of Chinese-made surveillance cameras at sensitive sites in Whitehall in 2022, citing security concerns.

...

A Surrey County Council (SCC) spokesperson said its library cameras operate as closed systems, meaning they are not connected to any corporate networks or the internet.

They said: "As a result, the primary risks normally associated with these devices – such as remote access or cyber vulnerabilities, do not apply in this case.

The council said the cameras were kept in secure staff-only areas and that any risk was considered "low" and the equipment was properly managed.

Sam Goodman, of the China Strategic Risks Institute, said councils should review their use of Hikvision equipment following concerns over national security and human rights.

...

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[-] Dave8008@feddit.uk 2 points 1 week ago

So what is the actual risk posed by a Chinese manufactured camera at a library?

[-] Curiositymonger@reddthat.com 4 points 1 week ago

For this camera at this place the risk is not a lot. The problem is that if an authoritarian state has the the whole market for security cameras, then there is no other option for places where security is much more important.

[-] Sepia@mander.xyz 4 points 1 week ago

In addition to what @Curiositymonger@reddthat.com has said, there is also the issue of working conditions under which these cameras have been produced, supposedly with forced labour/slavery-like conditions.

[-] catdog@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Good question.

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/france-set-summon-russian-ambassador-paris-over-alleged-cyberattack-campaign-2026-07-13/

More details in Dutch News: https://nos.nl/l/2622866

TL;DR: Large-scale Russian cyberattack on IPTV cameras near military routes uncovered bh Dutch intelligence agencies. Germany, Frans, Finland, The Netherlands summoned the Russian ambassadors to their countries.

Edit: I will not share info on Russo-Chinese collaboration. Should anyone need sources for that claim, the my won't be convinced anyway :-)

this post was submitted on 09 Jul 2026

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