Inspections of all 2,936 government-issued cellphones used by the military have been completed, with no high-risk Chinese-made apps found installed, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said, as the ministry works to implement five cybersecurity measures across the armed forces.
When China’s navigation app Amap (高德地圖) was deemed to pose a high cybersecurity risk several months ago, lawmakers asked the ministry to ban servicemembers from downloading the app, to prevent tactical planning and defensive strategies from leaking.
In a report, the defense ministry said yesterday that the Ministry of Digital Affairs on May 27 announced its cybersecurity assessment results on four apps made in China, including Amap.
The MND had already on April 24 and May 29 notified servicemembers that installing Chinese-made apps including Amap is strictly prohibited, and on June 4, ordered all units to inspect all government cellphones, it said. None of the 2,936 phones were found to have the app installed, it said.
The ministry said that in accordance with the Regulations Governing the Subsidies for Mobile Phone Numbers and Call Expenses of the Armed Forces (國軍行動通訊門號及通話費補助作業規定) and the Operational Requirements for Civilian Smartphone Control (民用智慧型手機管控作業要求), it protects military information and communication security through five main measures.
The measures include setting clear requirements, promoting policy awareness, auditing and inspection, annual checks and clearly defined penalties, it said.
The MND said Chinese-made apps such as Amap, TikTok, WeChat, Sina Weibo, Tencent QQ, bilibili, Xiaohongshu (小紅書, known as RedNote in English) and Baidu Netdisk were prohibited to prevent information leaks.
The ministry said it raises awareness reminding servicemembers not to install the banned apps. Servicemembers are strictly prohibited from using the phones to record or transmit military information to prevent data leaks or malicious access, it said.
The ministry said unit commanders and supervisors and cyberwarfare specialists would conduct regular and unannounced inspections on government and personal cellphones in their units.
Inspections would check if personal phones have been officially approved, if remote management measures are working as intended and to make sure no Chinese-made applications have been installed, it said.
If Chinese-made apps are installed on personal cellphones, servicemembers would be encouraged to delete them in order to prevent personal data breaches, it added.
The ministry uses annual communications, electronics and information systems readiness inspections to audit different levels of command in various operational areas, the ministry said.
It said if unit or personal cellphone usage violations are detected, they would be penalized according to the Armed Forces Disciplinary Punishment Act (陸海空軍懲罰法) and the Regulations Governing Armed Forces Information and Communication Security (國軍資通安全獎懲規定).
If a violation involves leaking confidential national defense information or damaging the reputation of the armed forces, the offender would be prosecuted in accordance with the law, and supervisory and management oversight failures on the part of unit commanders and chief information security officers would be examined for accountability, it added.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s remarks that Taiwan is a Chinese province seeking independence threaten regional peace and stability and could undermine Taiwanese businesses’ confidence in investing in Malaysia, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said today. Anwar recently made remarks implying that Taiwan is a province seeking to separate from China, effectively legitimizing Beijing’s position on using force to take Taiwan, the ministry said in a statement. The Republic of China, Taiwan, is a sovereign, independent country and is not subordinate to the People’s Republic of China, MOFA said, adding that that fact would not be changed no matter
CYCLONIC SEASON: Heavy rains and strong winds are lashing southern and central Taiwan as a clutch of tropical storm events form around Taiwan and in the Pacific The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday forecast heavy rain for southern Taiwan today, saying tropical depression TD22 would strengthen southwesterly winds and bring more downpours. The CWA said that in addition to torrential rain in southern Taiwan yesterday, mountainous areas in central and southeastern Taiwan also saw heavy rainfall, while northern and northeastern mountain areas were hit by short-duration downpours amid intense afternoon thunderstorms. Tainan had experienced continuous rain since Friday night, with Yongkang District (永康) recording more than 132mm of rainfall in three hours and Rende District (仁德) nearly 100mm over the same period, the CWA said. By 3:20pm yesterday, Pingtung County’s
The removal of the anime Chainsmoker Cat (尼古喵喵) from streaming platforms due to tobacco product placement complaints contravenes the principle of proportionality and stifles creative expression, an advocacy group said yesterday, after the Health Promotion Administration launched an investigation that could result in platform operators facing fines of up to NT$1 million (US$31,415). Bahamut Animation Crazy, an animation streaming platform, has confirmed that the show is no longer available in Taiwan, after the John Tung Foundation, the Taiwan Anti-Smoking Alliance and other groups yesterday called on authorities to investigate and urged the show to be removed for allegedly promoting smoking. In response,
The Ministry of Finance (MOF) announced yesterday that it will add more NT$500 (US$15.71) prizes to its bimonthly cloud invoice lottery this year, starting with the July-August draw on Sept. 25. Taiwan’s uniform invoice lottery is drawn on the 25th day of odd-numbered months -- January, March, May, July, September and November. Each draw covers receipts issued during the preceding two calendar months. Lou Mei-chung (樓美鐘), director-general of the MOF’s Taxation Administration, said the ministry decided to increase the number of NT$500 cloud-invoice prizes after assessing the prize redemption rate. The number of NT$500
RSS