Canada’s decision to order the shutdown of Hikvision’s operations within its borders was long overdue—and entirely justified.
For years, Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co. Ltd., a Chinese surveillance giant, has operated in Canada with minimal scrutiny, despite a well-documented history of ties to the Chinese state and a growing list of red flags around its activities worldwide. This isn’t just another foreign business facing regulatory challenges—Hikvision is a company whose cameras have been banned or severely restricted in countries like the U.S., the U.K., and Australia due to serious national security concerns.
In fact, it’s not even a secret: Hikvision is partially owned by the China Electronics Technology Group Corporation (CETC), a state-owned entity that plays a direct role in developing technologies for the People’s Liberation Army. CETC is not just a shareholder—it is listed as Hikvision’s “actual controller,” making the company an extension of Beijing’s geopolitical interests, whether it admits it or not.
This is not a theoretical concern. The U.S. Department of Commerce placed Hikvision on a trade blacklist in 2019, citing its role in the surveillance and oppression of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang. The stories that have emerged from survivors of the region’s internment camps are horrifying: forced labour, sterilization, political indoctrination, and torture. Hikvision technology helped enable that machinery of repression.
Despite these facts, Canadian institutions—federal agencies, provincial ministries, even schools and hospitals—have continued using Hikvision cameras, often unknowingly. A 2023 investigation in Quebec found Hikvision devices in over 50 public bodies. Meanwhile, a 2022 security alert from Canadian intelligence officials warned that the company and its products “could serve as an intelligence collection platform.” Yet only now, after a multi-step national security review, has Ottawa decided to act decisively.
Industry Minister Mélanie Joly’s announcement last week was both a clear statement of principle and a vital corrective. Her declaration that “the Government of Canada welcomes foreign investment—but will never compromise on national security” is not just rhetoric. It’s a reminder that sovereignty in the digital age depends not just on borders, but on who has access to our data, infrastructure, and institutions.
Predictably, the Chinese Embassy in Canada responded with accusations of “discrimination” and “overstretching” the concept of national security. But let’s be honest—this isn’t about fair play in a free market. It’s about protecting Canadians from covert surveillance and undue influence by a foreign authoritarian regime. China’s own laws, such as its 2017 National Intelligence Law, require companies like Hikvision to hand over data to the government if requested. That alone should disqualify them from operating in sensitive sectors of democratic countries.
Hikvision may call Canada’s decision “unfounded” and lacking in “procedural fairness,” but the burden of proof lies squarely with them. The public deserves transparency and safety, not vague corporate denials from a company with such a troubling track record.
Ottawa’s move isn’t about isolating China—it’s about safeguarding the integrity of our systems and values. In an increasingly digital world, surveillance tools are not just cameras on a wall—they are potential backdoors to espionage, coercion, and manipulation. We must not be naïve about who builds those tools and what their motives might be.
Canada has drawn a line. It’s the right call—and the rest of our public and private institutions must now follow suit to ensure that line holds firm.
