Privacy protection: Huawei calls for cybersecurity unity

Tech Company, Huawei thas opened its largest Global Cyber Security and Privacy Protection Transparency Center in Dongguan, China.

It used the event, which included representatives from GSMA, SUSE, the British Standards Institution, and regulators from the UAE and Indonesia to call for a unified approach to cybersecurity based on facts and verification, rather than suspicion and misconceptions.

“While we are deepening digitalisation across the world, cybersecurity is becoming more important than ever before,” says Dr Ken Hu, Rotating Chairman, Huawei.

“According to research from Cybersecurity Ventures, damages from cybercrime are set to reach US$6-trillion in 2021.”

Pointing to the rise of remote work and the increased amount of time people are spending online as a result of the pandemic, he points out the globe is facing deeper cybersecurity challenges than at any other time in its history.
To address these challenges, Hu says, a unified, collaborative approach between corporations, nation-states, regulators, and industry bodies are required.

“Cybersecurity is a complex, evolving challenge that requires collaboration,” he says. “In some places, there is still a misconception that country of origin affects network security. This is not true and prevents us from taking a unified approach to cybersecurity.”

The new transparency centre, he says, aims to change that and help facilitate collaboration across the ecosystem.

“At Huawei, cybersecurity is our top priority,” he says, pointing out that the company employs more than 3 000 cybersecurity professionals and spends five per cent of its R&D budget on cybersecurity.

“The new centre will demonstrate solutions, facilitate communication and joint innovation, and support stakeholders around the world,” he adds.

The event also saw Huawei launch its Product Security Baseline Whitepaper, which represents a further step in its quest for cybersecurity collaboration.

The whitepaper sets out the end-to-end framework which Huawei uses when it develops, tests, and launches products to ensure that they’re as secure as possible.

“The baselines outlined in the whitepaper ensure all Huawei products keep to regulatory standards,” says Sean Yang – Director of Huawei Global Cyber Security and Privacy Protection Office.