Queen's University to cut ties with Huawei amidst cyber-security fears

Queen's University Belfast has announced that it won't be seeking further research collaborations with Chinese mobile technology manufacturer Huawei. This announcement follows recent concerns over the firm's cyber-security.

The global mobile tech scene has been reacting harshly recently to potential cyber-security threats reportedly linked to Chinese mobile manufacturer Huawei. The US government has been concerned over Huawei's presence in its smartphone market for several years and has declared the devices to be a potential threat to its national security, but it's not clear whether the company represents a genuine threat or if this is a geopolitical issue.

China's 2017 National Intelligence Law requires Chinese organisations to co-operate with state intelligence work if required, a move that has since caused several countries to be worried about placing critical intelligence and communication systems in the hands of any Chinese company. New Zealand blocked imports of Huawei phones in November over these concerns, but the UK hasn't taken an official position on it.

Huawei pledged $2bn to allay fears over potential security vulnerabilities in its products, but many UK organisations are not convinced and have started removing the company's equipment from their services. Now Queen's University Belfast has revealed that it will join the growing list of UK organisations that will not seek any future work with Huawei. The university has one current research project with the company, which was funded and secured before security issues became a major topic of discussion.