SoVi3t
February 26, 2015, 2:12am
1
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/25/us-china-tech-exclusive-idUSKBN0LT1B020150225
China is no longer using high-profile US technology brands for state purchases, amid ongoing revelations about mass surveillance and hacking by the US government.
A new report confirmed key brands, including Cisco, Apple, Intel, and McAfee – among others – have been dropped from the Chinese government’s list of authorized brands, a Reuters report said Wednesday.
The number of approved foreign technology brands fell by a third, based on an analysis of the procurement list. Less than half of those companies with security products remain on the list.
Although a number of reasons were cited, domestic companies were said to offer “more product guarantees” than overseas rivals in the wake of the Edward Snowden leaks. Some reports have attempted to pin a multi-billion dollar figure on the impact of the leaks.
In reality, the figure could be incalculable.
The report confirms what many US technology companies have been saying for the past year: the activities by the NSA are harming their businesses in crucial growth markets, including China.
Chief casualty is U.S. network equipment maker Cisco Systems Inc (CSCO.O), which in 2012 counted 60 products on the Central Government Procurement Center’s (CGPC) list, but by late 2014 had none, a Reuters analysis of official data shows.
Smartphone and PC maker Apple Inc (AAPL.O) has also been dropped over the period, along with Intel Corp’s (INTC.O) security software firm McAfee and network and server software firm Citrix Systems (CTXS.O).
The number of products on the list, which covers regular spending by central ministries, jumped by more than 2,000 in two years to just under 5,000, but the increase is almost entirely due to local makers.
The number of approved foreign tech brands fell by a third, while less than half of those with security-related products survived the cull.
An official at the procurement agency said there were many reasons why local makers might be preferred, including sheer weight of numbers and the fact that domestic security technology firms offered more product guarantees than overseas rivals.
China’s change of tack coincided with leaks by former U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden in mid-2013 that exposed several global surveillance program, many of them run by the NSA with the cooperation of telecom companies and European governments.
“The Snowden incident, it’s become a real concern, especially for top leaders,” said Tu Xinquan, Associate Director of the China Institute of WTO Studies at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing. “In some sense the American government has some responsibility for that; (China’s) concerns have some legitimacy.”
Wasnt this already covered in another thread? Am sure peeps already talking about this, maybe the steam one.
This is new to me, I don’t know anything about security, thanks for posting this.
Manx
February 26, 2015, 6:55am
4
People shouldn’t be using Cisco anyway.
Enterasys too under-rated. Cisco is shit.
You know things are bad when the government’s activities start fucking with capitalism and they don’t care. O_O
The government sits atop capitalist property relations, and defends them violently (literally, with violence). The NSA spying isn’t directed at ‘terrorism’ or whatever, it is directed at the inevitable opposition which will come from the working class, which is re-emerging.
Can someone be arrested for this shit?
SoVi3t
February 26, 2015, 2:54pm
10
I’m still waiting on Bush and Co to be brought up on charges of war crimes, and for lying about WMDs.
pcworld.com/article/2886357/lenovo-preinstalls-man-in-the-middle-adware-that-hijacks-https-traffic-on-new-pcs.html
This is probably why, “Oh shit, if we can do it, they can to!”
For those who don’t know, Lenovo is one of the largest importers of PC’s/mobile devices in China.
The timing of this “announcement” and the discovery of the Lenovo security vulnerability overlaps way too closely to be a coincidence.
You’re gonna be waiting a loooooooong time Cuz that ain’t EVER gonna happen unfortunately. Even if they didn’t get prosecuted, having Cheney pay back all the money Halliburton made off that war would be a start.
Have any Americans ever heard of gladio b? This is old news. They were already harming everyone else, now they’re even harming their own pockets.
But fuck em, sideways and doggy style.
Lenovo, you fools, you just activated our trap cards:
This is looking interesting, please elaborate :o
what then? do all your switching with trendnet, hp or dell? juniper for routing?
I personally love cisco products in corporate environments, so i’m curious why you dislike them so much.
Rhio2k
March 6, 2015, 9:59am
17
highlulu:
what then? do all your switching with trendnet, hp or dell? juniper for routing?
I personally love cisco products in corporate environments, so i’m curious why you dislike them so much.
He might have an IT or workplace-based reason. Or blah blah blah Cyberdine, yacketty-schmacketty Skynet something something. Both are good.
