Hong Kong police drop public tender for IT revamp amid geopolitical tensions
Hong Kong police have called off the public tendering process for upgrading the force's computer and communications systems to ensure their security and supply stability amid heightened geopolitical tensions.
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According to a Security Bureau document set to be discussed at a meeting of the Legislative Council's security panel on June 3, the force will instead directly approach suppliers that meet all of its requirements.
Tendering procedures were already under way after the government secured the support of the panel back in 2023, the bureau wrote in the paper, which was made available online on Monday.
'However, as the project is related to the daily law enforcement work of police and directly affects national security, public safety, public order and the maintenance of law and order, police have updated their risk assessment,' it said.
'Based on the latest geopolitical risk assessment and taking into account potential medium and long-term supply chain and information security risks, police consider it necessary to increase the security and reliability requirements of this project to ensure the stability of the supply chain and enhance the long-term security and availability of the protection system.
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'In this context, police have decided to cancel this tender in the interests of the public and will adopt a direct-purchase approach to identify reliable suppliers that meet their service requirements.'
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