Huawei's HongMeng Kernel was awarded the industry's first Evaluation Assurance Level 6 Augmented (EAL6+) certificate as part of Common Criteria for Information Technology Security Evaluation (CC), the highest security level available in the field of general-purpose operating system (OS) kernels. Huawei is the world's first smart device manufacturer to receive the certification in this particular domain.

OS kernels are the foundation of OS security and privacy. CC, also known as the ISO/IEC 15408 standard, is an information security certification that is among the most influential in the global IT industry. CC is a widely used and globally recognized standard for product security evaluation.

SGS Brightsight, a major security evaluation lab, performed the security evaluation for HongMeng Kernel. Mr. Kai-Fan Chang, COO Asia of SGS Brightsight, said: "SGS Brightsight, the largest security evaluation lab in the world, is honored to have performed the security evaluation of Huawei's HongMeng Kernel and found that it reached international Common Criteria EAL6+ level. We believe that HongMeng Kernel will become one of the most important building blocks in future Huawei IoT and mobile products. Securing CC EAL6+ also shows the dedication of Huawei to create secure products."

Gong Ti, President of Huawei's Consumer BG Software Engineering Dept, said: "The security capabilities of the HongMeng Kernel are now recognized by internationally accredited certification bodies, reflecting the fact that the HongMeng Kernel has reached the highest security level for OS kernels and bringing device and ICT security to new heights."

Dr. Michael Lemke, Chief Security Officer of Huawei Germany, stated: "Kernels are the foundation of system security and privacy. Huawei is committed to ensuring security and privacy in the ICT and device domains. Moving forward, Huawei will continue to comply with the shared global standards for foundational software and cyber security and ensure that the security capabilities of Huawei's products continue to meet internationally recognized best practices."

The CC EAL6+ certificate marks a new level of industry recognition for Huawei's cyber security. To date, Huawei has obtained more than 500 certifications under industry-recognized cyber security schemes like CC, FIPS, ISO 19790, PCI DSS, and CSA STAR.

Cyber security and privacy protection are Huawei's top priorities, commitments that are above and beyond any commercial interests. Huawei continues to maintain a solid track record in cyber security, and our efforts have earned widespread recognition in over 170 markets around the world, where we serve more than three billion people. Customer trust is the most solid testament to the security and quality of Huawei's products and services.

On the industry front, Huawei firmly believes that openness and collaboration lead to shared success. We actively engage with the ICT industry, working with our peers and industry stakeholders to share best practices in cyber security and privacy protection. In 2022, we submitted nearly 300 cyber security standards proposals to 3GPP and GSMA. Working side-by-side with stakeholders all along the value chain, we are innovating together to bolster the industry's cyber security and privacy protection capabilities. Together, we are building a more secure digital world.

— WebWireID309520 —

The Chinese company Huawei is one of the giants of the tech industry. It’s the world's largest provider of telecommunications equipment, a leader in next-generation 5G technology, and last year it passed Apple to become the second-biggest smartphone seller in the world.

But to many, especially in the West, there’s still an air of mystery around it.

And in the United States, suspicion.

For years, Washington has been concerned that the Chinese government could use Huawei equipment to spy on other nations. The US government says Huawei could pose a threat to national security because it’s unable to say no to the Chinese government.

Huawei has pushed back against those allegations, saying it would refuse any Chinese government requests to gain access to the technology it sells to telecom operators. But last week, the Trump administration blacklisted the company, placing it on a list of foreign firms barred from receiving components from US exporters without a license.

In an effort to dispel some of the mystery surrounding it, Huawei has recently opened up its facilities to international media.

Kevin Frayer, a Getty Images photographer based in Beijing, traveled to southern China in April to visit three of Huawei’s campuses.

“My goal was to take people a step beyond the breaking news and Huawei headlines, to provide them a sense of what the company looks like and to see who works there,” he said.

Huawei has 180,000 employees worldwide. More than a third of them work at the campuses Frayer visited in Dongguan and nearby Shenzhen, which is considered China’s Silicon Valley.

The employees he encountered work in a variety of roles: production, research and development, and finance, just to name a few.

“Jobs at Huawei are coveted,” Frayer said. “It’s among the highest-paying companies in China for highly skilled workers, and many of its employees have been educated overseas and at the country’s top schools. Some of the brightest minds are hired away from other companies, and Huawei has also been luring foreign experts to join.”

Frayer marveled at the size of the campuses he visited, especially Huawei’s headquarters in Shenzhen and the European-style research-and-development campus in Dongguan.

“When you first arrive, it is a bit overwhelming how spread out everything is,” he said. “There are restaurants and cafes, sports facilities and its own transportation system. They have villas and fancy dining rooms for high-level clients and low-cost housing for employees.

“At the new European-style campus, the buildings are designed to reflect the company founder’s training as an architect. And every day after lunch, the lights are dimmed in most offices so workers can nap, which is common at companies in China.”

Frayer said the campuses feel like university campuses: quiet and relaxed, unlike much of the country.

“The only reminders that you’re in China were the crowds at lunch hour and the end of the work day,” he said.

Frayer was able to talk to some employees, and many of them expressed concern about what they see as misconceptions about the company.

“They were very aware of the political challenges and the American view, and they went to lengths to explain that Huawei is a tech company trying to innovate like any other tech company — as one engineer put it, to make things that make life easier.”

Some of the research-and-development areas were off-limits in the interest of protecting intellectual property, and Frayer was asked at times not to photograph some clients. But overall, he said, Huawei was very open in what they allowed.

He called the company a “juggernaut” and a source of national pride in China.

“It’s hard to really know what it’s like to work there, but people generally looked happy and interested in what they are doing,” Frayer said. “You could feel that it’s big and important and it’s growing.”

DELFT, Netherlands, Aug. 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Huawei's HongMeng Kernel was awarded the industry's first Evaluation Assurance Level 6 Augmented (EAL6+) certificate as part of Common Criteria for Information Technology Security Evaluation (CC), the highest security level available in the field of general-purpose operating system (OS) kernels. Huawei is the world's first smart device manufacturer to receive this certification in this particular domain.

OS kernels are the foundation of OS security and privacy. CC, also known as the ISO/IEC 15408 standard, is an information security certification that is among the most influential in the global IT industry. CC is a widely used and globally recognized standard for product security evaluation.

SGS Brightsight, a renowned security evaluation lab in the world, performed the security evaluation for HongMeng Kernel. Mr. Kai-Fan Chang, COO Asia of SGS Brightsight, said, "SGS Brightsight, as the largest security evaluation lab in the world, is honored to perform the security evaluation of Huawei's HongMeng Kernel to reach international Common Criteria EAL6+ level. We believe that HongMeng Kernel will become one of the most important building blocks in future Huawei IoT and mobile products. It also shows the dedication of Huawei to create secure products."

Gong Ti, President of Huawei's Consumer BG Software Engineering Dept, said, "The security capabilities of the HongMeng Kernel are now recognized by internationally accredited certification bodies, reflecting the fact that the HongMeng Kernel has reached the highest security level for OS kernels and bringing device and ICT security to new heights."

Dr. Michael Lemke, Chief Security Officer of Huawei Germany, stated, "Kernels are the foundation of system security and privacy. Huawei is committed to ensuring security and privacy in the ICT and device domains. Moving forward, Huawei will continue to comply with the shared global standards for foundational software and cyber security and ensure that the security capabilities of Huawei's products continue to meet internationally recognized best practices."

The CC EAL6+ certificate marks a new level of industry recognition for Huawei's cyber security. To date, Huawei has obtained more than 500 certifications under industry-recognized cyber security schemes like CC, FIPS, PCI DSS, and CSA STAR.

Cyber security and privacy protection are Huawei's top priorities, commitments that are above and beyond any commercial interests. Huawei continues to maintain a solid track record in cyber security, and our efforts have earned widespread recognition in over 170 markets around the world, where we serve more than three billion people. Customer trust is the most solid testament to the security and quality of Huawei's products and services.

On the industry front, Huawei firmly believes that openness and collaboration lead to shared success. We actively engage with the ICT industry, working with our peers and industry stakeholders to share best practices in cyber security and privacy protection. In 2022, we submitted nearly 300 cyber security standards proposals to 3GPP and GSMA. Working side-by-side with stakeholders all along the value chain, we are innovating together to bolster the industry's cyber security and privacy protection capabilities. Together, we are building a more secure digital world.

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