In August 2018, the United States Government gave government agencies one year to get rid of certain brands of Chinese-made surveillance cameras they had in operation.
However, as of the deadline in August 2019, an estimated thousands of these cameras are still in use in government agencies. Many agencies aren’t aware what devices they’re using and whether or not they are from Chinese manufacturers.
Surveillance Secure can not only help you identify and remove technology that doesn’t comply with the regulation outlined by the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), but can also provide approved alternatives to these surveillance cameras!
Why Are Chinese-Made Cameras Currently Banned?
In 2017, Chinese technology manufacturer Zhejiang Dahua Technology Company was found to have manufactured cameras with secret back doors. These entrances allowed unknown, unauthorized individuals to hack into them [1].
While the company has since released a statement saying the problem has been fixed and that their devices are in compliance with U.S regulations, the U.S Government isn’t taking any chances. It’s since banned Dahua and other companies that manufacture surveillance cameras in China, including Hangzhou Hikivison Digital Technology Company and also those from Huawei and ZTE.
Concerns still exist that these cameras are vulnerable to hacking, but agencies are finding that it’s not as simple to get rid of this technology as one might think. Some of these cameras are sold by third parties and others even list false manufacturers or origin, making them difficult to identify.
How to Know If Your Cameras Are Safe
The reason that thousands of Chinese-made cameras continue to exist in government agencies today despite the ban is because determining whether or not these cameras were made by the excluded companies is difficult for most people and even some technology professionals [2].
Some of these surveillance cameras are sold to companies such as Panasonic, and then rebranded and sold under those brands. A security firm or a government agency then purchases these devices from a manufacturer they believe is safe and installs them in businesses and government buildings.
How can you know if your cameras are Chinese-made or from an approved manufacturer? Surveillance Secure has the knowledge and expertise to help!
Surveillance Secure Supplies Cameras from Non-Chinese Manufacturers
As a security firm in the DC Metro Area for the past 13 years, Surveillance Secure not only has extensive knowledge of surveillance cameras, but also carries cameras from non-Chinese suppliers such as AXIS, Bosch, and Sony.
We can help you determine if your technology is made by one of the banned companies, and if so, replace the cameras to comply with federal regulations and reduce your agency’s risk for a security breach.
Many businesses don’t realize how the ban impacts them. Even though these manufacturers say they’re complying with U.S law, government agencies in the U.S need to abide by the regulations and remove the offending equipment [3].
Contact us at Surveillance Secure today to learn more about our security solutions and how we can help you identify equipment that jeopardizes our country’s safety. Call us at (877) 388-1248!
Sources:
- https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-07-10/banned-chinese-security-cameras-are-almost-impossible-to-remove
- https://www.wsj.com/articles/suspect-chinese-surveillance-gear-offered-for-sale-to-u-s-government-11565962437
- https://www.npr.org/2019/08/08/749318323/government-deadline-approaches-to-ban-chinese-made-surveillance-cameras
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