EU Assessing Security Risks to 5G

 

US President Donald Trump has advocated for a worldwide bar on Huawei on security grounds, notifying European telecom operators who rely upon the company's equipment to run networks. Excluding Huawei and ZTE Corp from the next generation of mobile networks would likely burden European phone companies with 55 billion euros (S billion) in excess costs and check the 5G roll-out, the wireless industry's main lobby group GSMA said last month.

 

'There's a lot of debate about Huawei,' Mr King said. 'It's not because we're obsessing about China. We're trying to develop a risk assessment across this market', and major suppliers will feature in the discussion. Whilst individual European governments are completely free to block a 5G supplier over security concerns, Mr King said that he desired they would rely on a risk assessment that he is putting together by Oct 1, based on information from all EU members.

 

'Huawei welcomes the fact-based approach that the EU plans to take in reviewing the national risk assessments of 5G network infrastructure,' the company remarked in a statement. 'It is now more important than ever to develop a common approach to cyber security.'

 

The EU is somewhat powerless to force its member states to abide by its suggestions, but Mr King said that the report should help them 'reach a view on whether particular products, services or suppliers are sufficiently safe' as states make measures on high-speed 5G spectrum auctions and network deployment, he told a Brussels press conference.

 

Whilst outright bans on Huawei appear less likely in Europe - the region that it relies on most for growth outside China - countries for example Germany, France and Britain have signaled more limited limitations and tighter oversight of their networks.

 

Huawei's European smartphone sales reduced last month, according to market research firm Kantar, after a US component supply ban on the Chinese manufacturer threatened its access to significant handset software.

 

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