The biggest security firms roll out the red carpet for a controversial Chinese surveillance camera manufacturer

The country’s largest security firms, including GardaWorld, are rolling out the red carpet to a controversial Chinese surveillance camera manufacturer in anticipation of their annual conference which will take place in April in Laval. A situation that concerns the Private Security Office, our Investigation Office has learned.

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The Canadian Security Association (CANASA) has accepted financial support from the company Hikvision which is co-presenting its conference, described as the most important security exhibition in Quebec, on April 24 at the Sheraton Hotel.

CANASA, a highly recognized organization in the field of security, has existed since 1977 and represents more than 1,000 Canadian companies, including GardaWorld and the consulting firm Stantec (see box).

However, their sponsor, Hikvision, is far from enjoying an enviable reputation in the field of security. Quebec completely banned the company from public contracts last December. The company also has restricted access to the United States and Australia for national security reasons, and has been accused in the past of participating in the repression of the Uyghur minority in China.

Recently, we reported that China could use Hikvision cameras to spy on Canada, according to a security alert sent last year by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service to the Quebec government.

The Private Security Bureau worried

We wanted to know why CANASA wanted to partner with Hikvision and how much the Chinese company had paid to obtain “diamond” sponsor status. But CANASA twice refused to answer our questions.

The association currently sits on the board of directors of the Bureau de la Sécurité Privée du Québec (BSP), the organization responsible for enforcing the law on private security and regulating the industry.

Alerted by our Bureau of Investigation, the Director General of the BSP, Claude Paul-Hus, expressed a certain unease. “It’s a worrying situation. We know that in the industry, this is talked about. We had discussions with CANASA Quebec. We are monitoring the situation closely.” He added that the BSP will not do anything “at the moment,” waiting to see how the situation evolves following recent discussions.

Close eyes

Various stakeholders in the security field contacted by our Investigation Office expressed the same discomfort.

“Hikvision is the elephant in the room right now. It’s the one we see, but that no one wants to approach. The security industry has been aware of these issues for years […] Several security companies resell company equipment [comme Hikvision] to their customers, because it costs less and they make a profit,” explains Luc Lefebvre, cybersecurity expert and co-founder of Crypto.Québec.

“We deliberately turn a blind eye to shady practices, because it is such a big camera manufacturer that we start asking questions about espionage […] could impact profit margins,” he says.

Other players in the security field, such as the ASIS Quebec association, which brings together security professionals, also affirm that Hikvision is a “product that cannot be touched”.

“Hikvision is banned from several major international organizations. We couldn’t have Hikvision [comme commanditaire]. It would embarrass our members to be in an event with the Hikvision logo,” says the president of ASIS Quebec and vice-president at IDEMIA, Denis Bourget.

We also contacted the Ministry of Public Security, which told us it had “discussions” underway with the Private Security Bureau regarding this situation. The ministry also indicated that it will not participate in the CANASA congress.

Private security – who does what?

BSP

• The Private Security Bureau (BSP) was created in 2010 to ensure the safety of the population and supervise the private security sector in Quebec.
• Its board of directors is made up of four members appointed by the Minister of Public Security and seven others appointed by company associations.
• The Quebec section of the Canadian Security Association (CANASA) has one of seven seats, which are renewed every three years.

CANASA

• The Canadian Security Association (CANASA) is a national association dedicated to defending the interests of the security industry.
• It has branches in almost all provinces.
• Well-known companies in the security field, such as GardaWorld, Gardium Security and Commissionaires, are members.

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