UK government seeks powers to secretly block risky tech suppliers
UK amendments to the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill would let ministers secretly ban risky tech suppliers across critical sectors.
The UK government published amendments to the Cyber Security and Resilience Bill creating 'vendor-related directions' that allow ministers to order companies in critical sectors to stop buying from a supplier, restrict its products, or remove installed equipment on national security grounds. The powers extend beyond telecoms to managed service providers, data centers, digital infrastructure and the energy, water, transport and health sectors, adapting the mechanism used to restrict Huawei in UK 5G while removing some transparency safeguards. Ministers would not have to publicly name the vendor, could withhold details on national security or commercial grounds, and could bar recipients and consultees from discussing the orders, though the government would report annually to Parliament on directions issued. The amendments will be considered at committee stage in the House of Lords in September.
- Powers allow secretly barring tech suppliers across telecoms, energy, health and data centers
- Modeled on the Huawei 5G restriction regime but with weaker transparency safeguards
- Ministers must report annually to Parliament on directions issued
- Committee stage in the House of Lords set for September
- Tags
- critical-infrastructurecyber-security-and-resilience-billhuaweinational-securityregulationsupply-chainuk
- Vendors
- Huawei
- Organizations
- UK GovernmentGCHQApple
- Countries
- United Kingdom
From the original article
3 min read at therecord.media
The British government is seeking new powers that would allow it to ban technology vendors on national security grounds from supplying companies working in the country’s critical sectors — and to potentially do so in secret without publicly identifying the supplier concerned and barring the company from discussing the instruction.
therecord.media
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