The Huawei and Snowden Questions

This is the fourth volume in the Simula SpringerBriefs series and explores questions surrounding cyber security and trustworthiness of IT products.

The Simula SpringerBriefs on Computing aims to provide introductions to select areas of research in computing. Each volume aims to provide an introduction to, and overview over, research fields that can otherwise be inaccessible. This is the fourth volume in this series.

The Huawei and Snowden Questions answers two central questions: 
1. Is it at all possible to verify electronic equipment procured from untrusted vendors?
2. Can I build trust into my products in such a way that I support verification by untrusting customers?

In discussions on cyber security, there is a tacit assumption that the manufacturer of equipment will collaborate with the user of the equipment to stop third-party wrongdoers. The Snowden files and recent deliberations on the use of Chinese equipment in the critical infrastructures of Western countries have changed this. The discourse in both cases revolves around what malevolent manufacturers can do to harm their own customers, and the importance of the matter is on par with questions of national security.

This book is tailored for both technologist and the broader interested public, making it particularly relevant for ICT and security professionals that need a clear technical understanding of these issues as well as decision-makers in industry, national bodies and nation states. In separate chapters the book takes readers through the state of the art in fields of computer science that can shed light on these questions, and the concluding chapter discusses realistic ways forward. The book also includes a 'guide for readers' that is written for readers without the technical background and provides an informed view of the problems at hand.

Open access

The Huawei and Snowden Questions is now available for download. As with all the Simula SpringerBriefs on Computing, this volume is open access under a CC BY 4.0 license and was published by SpringerOpen.

About the author

Professor Olav Lysne is the Director of Simula Metropolitan Centre for Digital Engineering. Lysne is also a professor in computer science at Simula and the University of Oslo. He holds a PhD in Computer Science from the University of Oslo, and his experience in research, education, management and innovation reaches back to 1989.

Lysne has previously been the leader of two separate National Commissions appointed by the Norwegian Government. Lysne was the leader of National Commission for Digital Vulnerability formed by the Norwegian government (Lysne I utvalget); their mandate was to write a report that forms the basis for the Government's cyber-policy. Additionally, Lysne headed a second National Commission (Lysne II-utvalget) that assessed whether the Norwegian Intelligence Service (Etterretningstjenesten) should be allowed to do lawful interception of Internet-traffic crossing the national borders of Norway.