India's alarm over Chinese surveillance prompts crackdown on cameras
Global makers of surveillance gear have clashed with Indian regulators in recent weeks over contentious new security rules that require manufacturers of CCTV cameras to submit hardware, software and source code for assessment in government labs, official documents and company emails show. The security-testing policy has sparked industry warnings of supply disruptions, and added to a string of disputes between Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration and foreign companies over regulatory issues and what some perceive as protectionism.
New Delhi's approach is driven in part by its alarm about China's sophisticated surveillance capabilities, according to a top Indian official involved in the policymaking. In 2021, Modi's then-junior IT minister told parliament that 1 million cameras in government institutions were from Chinese companies and that there were vulnerabilities, with video data transferred to servers abroad.
Under the new requirements, applicable from April, manufacturers such as China's Hikvision, Xiaomi and Dahua, South Korea's Hanwha, and Motorola Solutions of the U.S. must submit cameras for testing by Indian government labs before they can sell them in the world's most populous nation. The policy applies to all internet-connected CCTV models made or imported since April 9.
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