Huawei has defended its security record in a press conference with international journalists at its office in Dongguan, China. The meeting follows certain countries banning the company from providing network equipment due to concerns it may serve as a backdoor to Chinese intelligence agencies, as well as the arrest of the company's CFO in Canada on a US warrant for suspected trade sanction violations.
Huawei has repeatedly denied any links with the Chinese authorities and said its "security record was clean". Rotating chairman Ken Hu noted that there have been "no serious cybersecurity incidents in 30 years". Hu called on the concerned countries to provide evidence of the security issues. "Without factual evidence we don’t accept and we oppose those allegations," he said.
Hu warned that blacklisting the company could hold back growth in the telecom industry and the development of new wireless technologies. "Despite the efforts to create fear about Huawei and to use politics to interfere with industry growth, we’re proud to say that our customers continue to trust us," the chairman said.
To date, the US, Australia and New Zealand have banned Huawei and the Chinese supplier ZTE from providing 5G network equipment due to security concerns. However, the US has reportedly put pressure on other countries to exclude the Chinese companies, and some operators have said they are reviewing their procurement plans or voluntarily refraining from Chinese suppliers.
5G growth
Despite the opposition, Huawei continues to win 5G contracts around the world, Hu said. The company has more than 25 commercial contracts for 5G, slightly above the 22 the company announced in November, he said. It has already shipped more than 10,000 base stations for 5G networks.
The chairman would not comment directly on the arrest on CFO Meng Wanzhou, as it is an ongoing case, but noted that the company did not see any immediate impact on its business from the matter. He reiterated expectations that the group expects to pass USD 100 billion in revenues this year, up 8.7 percent from 2017.
US offensive
Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reports that Huawei has hired lawyers in the US to file legal ripostes to US agencies, in an effort to defend itself from the accusations and restrictions there. People familiar with the matter said the company changed its strategy in April from focusing on communications with policymakers to turning to legal channels.
In August filings to the FTC and FCC, the lawyers said Huawei’s exclusion from the US market would be anti-competitive. They argued that Huawei’s products would benefit people and businesses by increasing competition, which would lower prices and promote innovation. In a fresh filing on 07 December, Huawei’s lawyers challenged whether a recently signed defense-spending bill gave the FCC the authority to move forward with banning Huawei. They said the government should consider a more comprehensive cybersecurity approach that goes beyond simply banning a telecom-equipment company from the US market.
