National security or modern technology. That is the question

National security or technology. Australians seem to prefer the first option

An Australian survey reveals the views of ordinary people on the issue of privacy and security.

National security or state-of-the-art technology. One might wonder why we can't have both. But, that would be a topic for another type of blog. The truth is that following the Australian government's ban on two Chinese companies, ZTE and Huawei, to participate in the deployment of the 5g network, an institute decided include the topic at their annual survey.

The discussion not part of the debate among the Argentine presidential candidates. Nor does it appear to have been part of the electoral process in Spain or in any of the Latin American countries that were or are about to go to the polls. That is why in the absence of local data we must draw conclusions based on kangaroo country.

We should note that the survey we are working with was conducted by a public relations institute and not by a technology company.

National security or technology. What the Australians surveyed think

In deciding which foreign companies should be allowed to supply new technology for important services, the 44% of Australians surveyed they say that the government's first priority must be 'protect Australians of the intrusion of a foreign state '.

On the other hand, a significantly lower number (28%) believe that the government's first priority should be to bring the latest technology to Australia or keep prices low for consumers.

Total percentages vary when analyzed by age.

Among the jYoung people aged 18-29, only 34% want the government to focus on protectionWhile 36% and 28%, respectively, want more modern technology or lower prices.

Among the people of over 65 years 51% think that the shaft should be placed in the protection For its part, 22% and 26%, respectively, want more modern technology or lower prices.

Distrust of China

Map of Oceania and Asia

The level of distrust of Australians towards their Chinese neighbors is the highest in recent years.

Although it is the first time that he has asked about technology, if he had asked about the vision that Australians had on China. In 2019, trust and sympathy for China are at their lowest point in the survey's history.. Only 32% of Australians say they trust China to act responsibly in the world. That is 20 points less than last year.

Only 30% of Australians have "a lot" or "some" confidence that Chinese President Xi Jinping will do the right thing in world affairs, a drop of 13 points.

On the other hand, most Australians say that the Australian economy is too dependent on China and that Australia should do more to resist China's military activities in the region. Australians are often quite suspicious of Chinese investment in Australia and China's intentions in the Pacific. '

A solid majority of Australians believe that China's infrastructure investment projects in Asia are part of China's plans for regional domination (79%). Just over half disagree with the statement. They think that China's infrastructure investment projects in Asia are good for the region (52%). An important part of that investment are the international fiber optic links and 5G technology.

According to the authors of the report:

Australians may view our relationship with our biggest trading partner, China, as a similar priority to the United States, but only 4% say China is our best friend.

This number has halved since 2017. The number of Australians who say America is our best friend is now five times higher than the number who nominate China. Only 2% see Japan and 1% Indonesia as Australia's best friend.

And in your house, how are them?

It is clear that none of our countries is in a strategic position similar to Australia's vis-à-vis China. But, Let's change the country for the megacorporation that you want and let's ask ourselves the question. Do we want the privacy of our data or access to the latest technology.

Actually, there is a way we can have both. It is to require our governments that all the infrastructure that is installed, is done using hardware and software that is under open source licenses.


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