In China, the government maintains control over the Internet and all information and communications technology products and services provided by Chinese companies.According to an Argentine news site TelesemanaChina has used technology from Huawei, which has close ties to the Chinese government, to control and monitor its population.
In Latin America, Huawei is further developing its 5G network. Juan Pablo Salazar, founding partner of Colombian law firm Cyberlaw, spoke about this concern. Dear logo Some of this technology could be used to violate the rights of people in countries that do not respect democracy.
“Communications infrastructure has always been a conflict zone, creating certain safeguards for states to develop self-defense mechanisms from a security perspective, as well as being exploited against freedom of expression, freedom of communication, and people’s rights. “There is a possibility that it will be done,” Salazar said.
Thanks to Huawei’s products and technology, the Chinese government is continually perfecting its surveillance system. Telesemana report. Regimes with little democratic credibility could use this technology to extend their hold on power by controlling the activities of Latin American citizens, Salazar added.
“These types of governments would introduce digital dictatorships, and that must be avoided. In Venezuela and Nicaragua, we clearly see the rights of journalists and communications being violated,” Salazar said. he said. “There is a growing possibility that dictatorships will become even more powerful.”
The United States has long warned of the threat posed by this Chinese technology’s impact on information, intellectual property and the economy, the paper said. the hill It was reported on February 5th. Telesemana“Huawei acts as an extension” […] It concerns the security of the Chinese Communist Party. ”
For two decades, China has sought to dominate the world’s telecommunications equipment sector through Huawei. Along the way, it has engaged in a variety of questionable tactics to acquire technology and undermine its competitors. the hill report.
Huawei equipment can intercept and disrupt not only commercial mobile phone traffic, but also highly restricted defense and military communications. CNN report.
introduction
In Latin America, China already has strong dominance in 3G, 4G, and 5G networks. Telesemana report. Costa Rican researcher and IT expert Pablo Gamez Celsimo writes in his book that the Asian country is looking to develop technology in the region to deepen its influence and assert its global digital dominance. He says he is taking advantage of the interest in digital predator.
5G America, an industry group made up of telecommunications service providers and manufacturers, said in a study that Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay already have strong 5G internet deployments. are doing. thing. Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba are managed using his 4G and 3G network applications.
As part of China’s strategy to deepen its influence, Huawei not only provided significant investment and sponsorship to soccer teams in Latin America, but also provided social assistance to countries in the region through its cloud system, Gamez said in his book. There is.
“In the infrastructure [such as 5G] It’s completely interconnected and it’s very hard to know at what point it might become interconnected [interference] When it comes to people’s rights, it comes from private entities, in this case Huawei,” Salazar said.
Control
If China succeeds in deploying 5G networks in Latin America, China will have access to all documents, communications, files, It will be possible to manage geolocation information and other sensitive elements. infobae report.
Salazar said, “If a conflict were to break out between China and the United States or any other country, those in control of the communications infrastructure would not only be able to shut down connections, they would also be able to control the internet and determine who could hide intelligence information. You can know directly what is going on.”
Salazar added that the communication outage is “not fiction.” This is because it has already happened in various cyberattacks, including in Ukraine.
“The potential and capabilities of 5G networks are that they are more latent. They can be shut down or controlled by a third country at any time. [such as China]” Salazar said. “There are large companies in Latin America that have sold their telecommunications infrastructure to Huawei to manage as a third party.”
“Faced with this scenario, states will need to modify their regulations to ensure that people’s rights continue to be respected in this new network that is being built,” Salazar concluded. “Here, the United Nations could play a fundamental role in setting agreed rules in this area.”
