'We should worry about Chinese cameras six feet above than spy balloons 60,000 feet in the air': UK watchdog

London: A UK based watchdog has insisted that Britain should be more worried of the made-in-China surveillance cameras installed in its streets than the spy balloons.

According to recent findings from the Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner (OBSCC), Chinese cameras, drones, and other surveillance tools are “shot through” the British police forces.

The findings, which were made public today, reveal that 18 forces employ CCTV cameras in high streets and other public areas that were produced by companies that raise security or ethical questions, including state-affiliated Dahua as well as Hikvision and Huawei.

Additionally, 24 of them claimed to have controversial Chinese companies’ internal cameras in their structures.

When questioned about their ANPR, which is used to detect cars and determine whether they are connected to criminal suspects, 11 forces claimed that the technology they were utilising raised security or ethical questions.

Frontline officers in two forces have body-worn cameras from Hikvision attached to their uniforms. Hikvision has been dubbed a “unacceptable risk to the national security” of the United States in addition to its government CCTV ban.

According to the company’s privacy statement, it tracks client locations, gathers login information, and asks consumers to grant it access to their smartphone data. Additionally, DJI unmanned aircraft, which are likewise prohibited by the US, are used by 17 police units.

Additionally, according to the watchdog’s poll, organisations that are using these devices are generally aware of the several security and ethical problems attached to these Chinese companies that are manufacturing and supplying the video camera kits.

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“It is plainly evident from our extensive examination of the survey data that the police estate in the UK is shot through with Chinese surveillance cameras,” stated Fraser Sampson of the OBSCC.

“It is also evident that the troops using this equipment are generally aware of the ethical and security issues surrounding the manufacturers of their equipment,” he said.

About the recently grown concerns on the Chinese spy balloons that are 60,000 feet in the air, Fraser said, “I do not understand why we are not at least as concerned about the Chinese cameras six feet above our head in the street and elsewhere…”

He said, “It should be considered whether it is appropriate for bodies to use equipment made by companies with “such serious questions hanging over them”.

The UK has reviewed its security procedures in light of growing concerns about the threat posed by Chinese surveillance balloons since the US shot down four objects that were in its airspace this month.

Washington classified one of the aircraft as Chinese spy equipment.

There are already security concerns over police use of drones developed in China.

In June of last year, the National Crime Agency (NCA), the Ministry of Defense, the British Transport Police, the Civil Nuclear Constabulary, and every police force in England and Wales were questioned about how they utilise and oversee CCTV and other surveillance cameras.

Australia announced last week that it would take down security cameras from its defence department buildings that were made by companies affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party.

It was “disappointing” that only 39 of the 47 entities and forces contacted for the poll answered, according to the OBSCC.

When asked whether their internal camera systems used equipment that raised security or ethical issues, at least 24 people responded in the same way as those whose external camera systems did.

A spokesman for the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) stated: “UK Policing will conduct necessary reviews to ensure national security standards are met following government guidance where governmental departments have been
instructed to stop the deployment of such equipment around sensitive sites”.

“In the vast majority of contracts used in policing, there are particular provisions for equality, diversity, and human rights. Contractual suppliers are subject to these, and they would be utilised to enforce any contract violations.”

The Telegraph also revealed that a Chinese company that is blacklisted in the US produces more than two-thirds of the drones used by UK police departments.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman had “concerns” about the use of Chinese technology in the UK, a Home Office source told the newspaper on Tuesday. Braverman would like police to ensure that all of their data is “safe and not vulnerable to any influence by a foreign power,” the source added.

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