Margrethe Vestager stressed that “threats have no place and will not deter Europe from taking legitimate steps to protect its critical infrastructure.”
The European Commission praised this Friday the conclusions of the Portuguese authorities on the risk to the security of some 5G equipment, which may lead to the exclusion or application of restrictions to providers, stressing that “threats have no place in Europe”.
I congratulate the Council [Superior] de Cibersegurança de Portugal for its considered decision to implement the EU’s 5G security toolset”, reacted the executive vice president of the community executive with the Digital portfolio, Margrethe Vestager, in a post on the social network Twitter.
Sharing an article in a Portuguese newspaper about Huawei’s possible exclusion from fifth-generation (5G) mobile networks, Margrethe Vestager highlighted that “Threats have no place and will not deter Europe from taking legitimate action to protect your critical infrastructure.
This is the first European reaction to the decision issued last week by the Security Assessment Commission, within the scope of the Higher Council for Cyberspace Security, on the “high risk” for the security of 5G networks and services the use of equipment from suppliers that, among other criteria, are from outside the EU, NATO or the OECD and that “the legal system of the country in which it is domiciled” or connected “allows the Government to exercise control, interference or pressure about its activities operating in third countries”.
The deliberation does not mention names of companies or countries, but the truth is that the case of Huawei comes to mind, specifically because the Chinese technology was banned in the 5G networks of other countries, including the United Kingdom and Sweden. It is up to Anacom to comply with the decision.
In January 2020, the European Commission advised Member States of the European Union (EU) to apply “relevant restrictions” to providers deemed “high risk” in 5G networks, including excluding them from their markets to avoid risk.” critics”.
This was a toolbox released at the time with recommendations that Member States apply to mitigate possible cyber-attacksespionage actions or other problems related to the development of this new technology.
At the time, the community executive guaranteed that these actions “are not directed at any provider or country in particular”, but it is certain that the Chinese manufacturer Huawei has been at the center of the controversy since then for alleged espionage in 5G equipment, which the technology has been rejecting, reiterating the lack of evidence. Europe is Huawei’s largest market outside of China.
Assumed as a European priority since 2016, the commitment to 5G has also raised concerns about cybersecurity.
In March 2019, Brussels asked each country to analyze the national risks with 5G, in which Member States detected the possibility of cases of espionage or cyber attacks coming, in particular, from third countries.
Source: Observadora
