Chinese-made surveillance cameras will be ripped out of ‘sensitive’ Australian government buildings after fears they could send data back to Beijing
- The govt will remove Chinese surveillance equipment
- Cameras and devices were installed in govt buildings
- China’s govt partly-own the companies making the devices
Australia’s defence minister said more than 900 Chinese-made surveillance cameras and devices will be removed from sensitive Australian government buildings, with fears the equipment could send data back to Beijing.
‘We’re doing an assessment of all the technology for surveillance within the defence estate and where those particular cameras are found, they’ll be removed,’ Richard Marles told the ABC.
‘It’s a significant thing that’s been brought to our attention and we’re going to fix it.’
An audit uncovered the shocking amount of devices made in China riddled throughout government buildings including inside offices operated by Defence, Foreign Affairs and the Attorney-General’s Department.
More than 900 Chinese surveillance cameras and devices linked to China’s communist government are installed in Australian government buildings (stock image)
The cameras and devices are manufactured by Chinese companies, Hikvision and Dahua, which are both partly-owned by the Chinese government.
Surveillance equipment from Hikvision and Dahua was either banned or heavily restricted in the United States and United Kingdom last November.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese brushed off concerns that removing the equipment would further damage relations with China.
‘We act in accordance with Australia’s national interest,’ he said.
‘We do so transparently. That’s what we’ll continue to do.’
More to come.
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