Aussie spy boss defends the 5G ban on Chinese tech giant Huawei

CLAIMS DECISION WAS BASED ON “TECHNICAL ADVICE”.

CHINESE TECH COMPANY Huawei was informally blocked from supplying parts for Australia’s National Broadband Network, but that was later officially extended to a ban from participating in the setting up of the country’s 5G network. The 5G ban also included ZTE, another Chinese tech giant. The head of the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD), Mike Burgess, has now publicly revealed that the Chinese tech companies are “high-risk vendors” that pose unacceptable risks to the multi-billion dollar 5G network. He said that the decision was “not made lightly” and was “supported by technical advice” provided by the ASD. Explaining that the 5G rollout would be part of practically every aspect of life in the near future, including driverless technology, power distribution and water supply, he added that “the stakes could not be higher”. “This is about more than just protecting the confidentiality of our information – it is also about integrity and availability of the data and systems that we rely on in our everyday lives,” Burgess explained. Australia needed to make sure its critical infrastructure secure, he said, adding that “a potential threat anywhere in the network is a threat to the whole network”.