Government agencies are to be banned from using any Chinese electronics from the end of this year, rather than have a “blacklist” of products that must be continually updated, a source within the Executive Yuan said on Saturday.
The Executive Yuan on April 19, 2019, released guidelines on the use of information and communications technology products that might pose a threat to national cybersecurity at public institutions.
The guidelines included plans to publish a list of banned products within three months, but the list has yet to be released.
Photo: Bloomberg
Responding privately to legislators’ concerns over the delay, the Executive Yuan said that it revised the policy by banning all information and communications technology products made by Chinese firms, an Executive Yuan source said on condition of anonymity.
The change was made over concerns about needing to constantly update a list, as well as the difficulty of precisely defining its scope, considering the volume of subsidiary products, the source said.
Federal and local agencies had been instructed to remove all China-made information and communications technology equipment by the end of this year, he said.
Agencies unable to comply must seek approval from the Executive Yuan in a report stating their reasoning and when banned products could be phased out, he added.
The decision is a prudent way to avoid the controversy that can accompany publishing a blacklist, the source said.
Central government agencies had been banned from using equipment made by Huawei Technologies over concerns regarding its links to China’s People’s Liberation Army, but products such as cameras from Hikvision Digital Technology are still widely used due to their competitive pricing, reports have said.
Executive Yuan data released in May showed that 19,256 China-made devices were in use at 2,596 public schools, federal agencies and local governments.
Of these, 717 institutions used 1,848 drones or cameras made by the Shenzhen-based firm Da-Jiang Innovations Technology, the data showed.
Meanwhile, 423 institutions used 1,632 computer networking or recording products from TP-Link Technologies, and 309 agencies or schools used 1,076 camera products from Hikvision, the data showed.
EIGHT KILLED: Three of the four juvenile victims were children of the man suspected of setting the fire at the tire repair shop after a family dispute Four of the eight people killed in a fire in Hsinchu City on Wednesday night were children and the other four were adults who died while trying to rescue the children from the second floor of the burning building, the city’s Fire Bureau said yesterday. Fire Bureau First Corps commander Chang Chih-chih (張智智) told a news conference that the fire at Zheng Yi Tire Repair Shop on Dongda Road might have been intentionally set by the owner’s son, Chen Yen-hsiang (陳彥翔), who earlier had an argument with other family members. Chen allegedly bought gasoline and lit a fire near four motorcycles inside
FIFA World Cup host Qatar has corrected an online application form that listed Taiwan as part of China, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday. Following the ministry’s protest on Wednesday, “Taiwan” replaced “Taiwan, Province of China” on a dropdown menu on the Web site to apply for a Hayya Card, an identification card all World Cup spectators are required to obtain, ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou (歐江安) said. “We express our appreciation to the event organizers for their swift response in making the correction and safeguarding the rights of our nation’s fans,” she added. The card also serves as an entry visa for
FIVE QUESTIONED: Customers reported faulty kits after Safeway OA Supply Co allegedly imported poor-quality versions from China and sold them as US-made products The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yesterday banned the sale and importation of Flowflex COVID-19 rapid test kits, after 2.37 million flawed kits, allegedly made in China, entered the Taiwanese market and were sold to 13 government agencies. According to regulations, the kits should be manufactured in factories in the US, but the importer allegedly imported poor-quality kits from China illegally and sold them as US-made products, FDA section chief Fu Ying-hsien (傅映先) said. The FDA ordered that all Flowflex COVID-19 Antigen Home Tests that were imported by Safeway OA Supply Co Ltd (大鑫資訊) be recalled and warned customers against buying or
NEW TRAVEL REGIME: The CECC advised people to stay put in between quarantine and self-disease prevention, but said that they could apply for a location change Inbound travelers who need to change locations for the four-day self-disease prevention period following their three-day quarantine must apply with their local government, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday. The “one person per household” principle would remain in place under the new “3+4” quarantine policy, which was implemented yesterday, the center said. More than 4,500 incoming travelers were expected yesterday, including more than 980 people who entered Taiwan in the early morning, said Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞), the CECC’s acting spokesman and medical response division deputy head. Lo said many people had asked the CECC whether
RSS