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Privacy Security United Kingdom Technology

UK Minister: Huawei Leaks 'Unacceptable', Criminal Investigation Possible (reuters.com) 77

The UK Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright said on Thursday he could not rule out a criminal investigation over the "unacceptable" disclosure of confidential discussions on the role of China's Huawei in 5G network supply chains. From a report: Huawei, the world's biggest producer of telecoms equipment, is under intense scrutiny after the United States told allies not to use its technology because of fears it could be a vehicle for Chinese spying. Huawei has categorically denied this. Sources told Reuters on Wednesday Britain's National Security Council (NSC) had decided to bar Huawei from all core parts of the country's 5G network and restrict its access to non-core parts. The leak of information from a meeting of the NSC, first reported in national newspapers, has sparked anger in parliament because the committee's discussion are supposed to be secret. "We cannot exclude the possibility of a criminal investigation here," Wright said, speaking in response to an urgent question on Huawei in parliament. "I do not think that the motivation for this leak matters in the slightest. This was unacceptable and it is corrosive to the ability to deliver good government."
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UK Minister: Huawei Leaks 'Unacceptable', Criminal Investigation Possible

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  • There is no Huawei (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday April 25, 2019 @02:39PM (#58491472)

    There is only the Chinese military; Huawei is a marketing name for the PLA.

    • by Anonymous Coward

      From a european standpoint:
      Same goes for Cisco and the CIA.

    • by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

      By that logic so are several US companies with close ties to the military.

      Not sure what it makes Cisco either... The NSA's bitch perhaps?

  • What is core? Is street furniture, local links, the broadcast towers non core. Is the core the switching computers that route the traffic? Does anyone know how to divide up the architecture?

    • nuclear fission, military, intel, power subsystems, but they don't care about traffic lights except in key locations

    • by Anonymous Coward

      It's a well understood term for those in the industry. The core network, not the RAN or other bits.

  • yes, I know the US thinks it's called Five Eyes but ...

    • by shanen ( 462549 )

      No, I don't understand why you you prefer Four Eyes. Are you saying that one of the eyes is blind? If so, that might be American eye due to the mote (or beam?) at the apex... Nor can I guess what "action" you might be thinking of.

      I'm beginning to think that they [Five Eyes] doth protesteth and projecteth too much. I think they may be accusing Huawei of doing what they are already doing (and some more besides). If so, then this story is just another example of (formerly Great) Britain's "special relationship

      • by Anonymous Coward

        Again, learn to read you fucking moron. https://www.networkworld.com/article/2223272/60-minutes-torpedoes-huawei-in-less-than-15-minutes.html

        They aren't making it up. The fact that POLAND AND THE NETHERLANDS both caught Huawei spies must have been missed by your illiterate ass also, somehow, amazingly.

        An obvious idea would be to FUCKING READ ABOUT THIS BEFORE YOU SPOUT NONSENSE.

      • Interesting. It is possible that one casts aspersions on others who do as we do, but we would never spy on your telephone or cell calls, or make security holes in your devices.

        Right?

        • by shanen ( 462549 )

          You still didn't address my main question about why you used the "Four Eyes" subject.

          I think your new comment addresses motivations? If so, there are two categories to consider, monetary and conflict-related.

          If the goal is just to make money, then Huawei has a strong interest in providing secure equipment so as to attract more customers. There is no doubt that Huawei is strongly motivated to make profits, but that doesn't mean profits are their only concern.

          The conflict-related objectives are much more comp

          • Not every question will be answered. Get used to disappointment.

          • by AHuxley ( 892839 )
            Who the US will trust with real time sharing of mil/gov data can change.
            5 eyes can become 4 eyes with the UK removed from that level of real time data sharing from the US.
            The US can stop sharing its data at ant time for any reason it wants. The UK would be alone with its own networks and what the GCHQ can find the budget for.
            The UK would be back trying to run a global collection network on a UK only GCHQ budget.
            No more decades of support from US tax payers every year.
            No more US help/support/sharing/
            • by shanen ( 462549 )

              Z^-1

            • The US can certainly remove the UK from its data sharing.

              The UK can also remove the US from using UK sites for SIGINT collection. Which would put quite a dent in US data collection...

              • by AHuxley ( 892839 )
                The US would not have allowed any nation to have that amount of control over US collection.
                Nothing would put a dent in US data collection as its no longer needs access to 1950's UK Commonwealth nations base/site locations.
                The US has its own sites now. The loss of the UK as a collection centre is of no issue to the USA.
                Nothing the UK offers as a collection location is out of reach for the US in 2019.
                The US put decades and a lot of UK tax payers money into shared UK/US sites.
                UK gov/mil staff enjoyed so
                • by Cederic ( 9623 )

                  The UK does support the US, and it would definitely hurt the US if the UK (and Commonwealth) withdrew their support.

                  It's not going to happen though, so I'm not really worrying about it.

                  • by AHuxley ( 892839 )
                    Most nations got out of the formal and direct UK gov control of the "Commonwealth" by the 1980's.
                    That left them open to US base support. The US to have its own joint sites with such nations who where now free of UK gov control.
                    "List of countries that have gained independence from the United Kingdom"
                    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]
                    The NSA upgraded to use systems that did not need the 1950's collection that needed UK Commonwealth nations support and UK base locations.
                    The US can walk away for the UK on
                    • by Cederic ( 9623 )

                      until the UK gov/mil selected not to support the USA

                      When was that? In the last century I mean.

                      It was very useful for UK staff to visit the US and get invited in to see US advancements in mil tech.

                      It's useful for the US to pop over and see our advancements too.

                    • by AHuxley ( 892839 )
                      Re "until the UK gov/mil selected not to support the USA"
                      When the UK failed to listen to US security advice.

                      Re "It's useful for the US to pop over and see our advancements too."
                      The UK has not had any crypto/tech advancements of interest to the USA since the 1940-1970's.
                      Since then its been a one way transfer of tech/support/ability/projects from the USA to the UK.
                      A lot of US tax payers support fo shared US sites too.
          • by shanen ( 462549 )

            That sort of mindless tripe is not what Aldous Huxley would have wanted his name on.

      • by AHuxley ( 892839 )
        Four eyes. The UK no longer gets US real time mil/gov/spy support.
        Nothing real time for GCHQ/MI5/6/SAS.
        The SAS is then back to 1950's levels of UK communications support around the world without US realtime communications/cover.
        The US stops all real time sharing of its collection in Ireland with the UK.

        Upgrades and support for the GCHQ are then given to more secure nations that the US can trust.
  • by Anonymous Coward

    And again, there has never been any evidence or anything of substance, only accusations. The US doesn't want Huawei's telecom equipment in Europe, because it stops the US from engaging in cyber espionage and sabotage.

  • by Anonymous Coward

    And here I thought opacity was an enabler of corruption.

  • by Anonymous Coward

    is the government governing FOR US, or US?

    i think it is more likely that Huawei is refusing to install back doors for GCHQ and the NSA.

  • The UK government has proved its commitment to becoming the world's buffoon in the last three years. This is just another brick in that wall.
    • by Cederic ( 9623 )

      As a Brit I take offence at this. The Government's behaviour, that is, not your accurate summary of it.

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