Canada Bans Chinese CCTV Vendor Hikvision Over National Security Concerns – Source: www.infosecurity-magazine.com

Chinese video surveillance provider Hikvision will no longer be allowed to operate in Canada or sell its products to Canadian government agencies.

Mélanie Joly, Canada’s Minister of Industry, said on June 28 that the federal government has ordered the Chinese CCTV vendor’s local subsidiary, Hikvision Canada Inc., to cease operations in the country and close its Canadian business.

This decision follows a national security review under the Investment Canada Act, a federal law that governs foreign investments in Canadian businesses, conducted in collaboration with the country’s security and intelligence community.

“The government has determined that Hikvision Canada Inc.’s continued operations in Canada would be injurious to Canada’s national security,” said Joly’s public statement, published on X.

The ban also prohibits Canadian federal institutions, including government agencies, departments, and Crown corporations, from purchasing Hikvision products.

The federal government has launched an investigation to confirm that no federal institutions are using any previously acquired Hikvision products.

The decision does not ban the use of Hikvision products outside of the Canadian federal government, meaning individuals and private businesses can still buy the Chinese vendor’s products through affiliates.

However, the Minister “strongly encourage[s] all Canadians to take note of this decision and make their own decisions accordingly.”

This ban comes two years after the Canadian province of Quebec prohibited Hikvision technology from being used in government in late 2023.

Hikvision Product Bans Across the World

Hikvision has faced widespread bans and restrictions due to concerns over human rights abuses, security risks and alleged involvement in surveillance operations.

In the US, the federal government began considering sanctions in 2019, ultimately banning Hikvision from government contracts and placing it on the Entity List for its role in surveilling Uyghurs and other minorities in Xinjiang.

Hikvision denied the allegations, calling them baseless, but later hired lobbyists and a former US ambassador to address compliance issues.

Similar actions followed in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. In 2020, India banned Hikvision from participating in government tenders and mandated the removal of its cameras from military and high-security areas.

In 2021, South Korea temporarily banned 224 Hikvision products over forged test reports, while the Indian Navy ordered the discontinuation and destruction of existing Hikvision surveillance systems.

The European Parliament also removed Hikvision thermal cameras from its premises in April 2021, citing risks of complicity in human rights violations in Xinjiang.

Similarly, Hikvision cameras were removed from UK government buildings and banned in sensitive sites over human rights and security concerns in November 2022.

The same year, the US declared a ban on imports and sales of Hikvision equipment.

Australia’s Department of Defence announced plans in 2023 to remove Hikvision cameras from its facilities and New Zealand halted purchases of the company’s products.

Ukraine designated Hikvision an “international sponsor of war” in 2023 for supplying dual-use equipment to Russia, further expanding the scope of restrictions against the company.

In 2024, Taiwan indicted a Hikvision employee for illegal operations on the island.

In October 2024, the UK Defence Journal reported that the UK government had announced the removal of over 50% of Hikvision surveillance cameras from sensitive sites, with ongoing efforts to ensure complete removal by April 2025.