Dahua's Terrible Cybersecurity, Buys Credibility From PSA And SIA

Published Jun 04, 2018 11:51 AM
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Dahua has a terrible cybersecurity track record.

But American organizations, like the Security Industry Association (SIA) and the PSA Security Network, are happy to sell them credibility, declaring Dahua a 'cyber responsible partner', thanking Dahua for paying to be their 'gold sponsor':

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Dahua deserves embarrassment and criticism for their actions, not thanks. These American organization's desire for money tops their claimed mission of improving cybersecurity.

Let's review Dahua's terrible record.

(1) Dahua Massive Hacks

Dahua's customers and integrators were hit with the industry's worst hack attacks in September 2017 due to Dahua's backdoor(s).

(2) Dahua Hide The Hacks

Dahua refused to give notice warning nor inform their dealers until after IPVM reported on it. Even after they did acknowledge it publicly, they buried it under the Orwellian spin "Dahua USA launches latest cybersecurity initiatives."

(3) Dahua Backdoor

In 2017, Dahua had a backdoor across virtually all of their products, which led to (1) and (2) above.

(4) Dahua Refused To Disclose Devices Impacted

Dahua hurt their customers by only ever releasing a short, incomplete list of devices vulnerable to the backdoor, refusing to make clear all the firmware versions and models impacted. As a point of comparison, much maligned Hikvision was able to do this, while Dahua refused.

(5) Dahua Mirai Botnet

Dahua's cybersecurity vulnerabilities also made Dahua devices a key weapon in the 2016 Mirai botnet attacks.

(6) Dahua Claimed To Be A "Victim"

Much like the 2017 hacks, Dahua refused responsibility for Mirai, arguing that they were a 'victim', rather than taking responsibility for their basic cybersecurity errors being the enabler of these attacks.

(7) Dahua Falsely Claims GDPR Certification

Not even 2 weeks ago, Dahua falsely claimed that their products were 'certified to comply with GDPR'. This is clearly impossible as no products can be certified for GDPR. Much like they are paying PSA and SIA for credibility, Dahua found another Western organization to validate them erroneously.

(8) US House Bill Bans Dahua

Not even 2 weeks ago, the US House passed a bill banning US government usage of Dahua among other Chinese companies found to be 'risky technology'.

SIA / PSA - Dahua 'Cyber Responsible Partner'

Not only does Dahua get SIA and PSA to thank them, these organizations are endorsing Dahua as a 'cyber responsible partner' featuring a Dahua salesperson at their cybersecurity forum [link no longer available]:

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'Industry Leader'

Indeed, PSA President Bill Bozeman referred to Dahua as an 'industry leader' who, despite Dahua's terrible track record, was allowing Dahua to speak about 'what it means to be a responsible cyber partner' in their sponsor announcement:

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Ethics aside, Dahua has made a smart move, paying to get labeled as a 'Cyber Responsible Partner' by the Security Industry Association.

Hold Dahua Responsible

A critical problem in cybersecurity are manufacturers who are indifferent, incompetent and unwilling to do the right thing. Dahua has demonstrated all of the above. If we truly want better cybersecurity, we need to hold these companies responsible. We cannot be like the PSA and SIA who happily endorse and thank them for money.

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