Huawei Faces Ban In Canada Over Security Risks

Earlier this week, both Huawei and ZTE were accused of espionage practices on behalf of the Chinese government, and the US House Intelligence Committee recommended that companies in the US should refrain from using either Huawei or ZTE hardware. Of course, both companies denied the claims, but Huawei is now getting a lot of grief from Canada.

Canada has plans to implement a secure Canadian government communications network that would carry government phone calls, emails and data center services. Canada was going to bring Huawei on board to help out with the initiative, but after hearing about the claims against the Chinese device manufacturer, Canada is thinking about excluding them from the project.

Huawei actually has been doing very well in Canada. In 2008, they were awarded a contract to build networks for Telus Corp and Bell Canada, and the company even received a C$6.5 million ($6.6 million) grant from Ontario towards an investment by Huawei in research and development that would cost a total of C$67 million.

The US House Intelligence Committee warned Canadian companies not to do business with Huawei, and it warned that China could be using equipment made by Huawei to spy on certain communications and threaten critical systems through computerized links. The potential ban on Huawei could have negative effects on both Huawei and Canada, and this certainly may not be the end to this madness.

[via Reuters]