Manager is said to have hired IT specialists in Munich to research software from competitor Cisco.
A manager of the Chinese technology giant Huawei is said to have commissioned IT specialists from the Huawei research center in Munich with industrial espionage. According to Welt am Sonntag , the development team should research software from competitor Cisco and copy it in an unauthorized manner.
Accordingly, the order could have come directly from the Huawei headquarters in China. According to Welt am Sonntag , team members said that they had resisted the order and asked for clarification with the legal department. However, this clarification did not take place. After the team refused to carry out the order, several of them felt the consequences. One employee's employment contract was terminated, another was demoted and a third, who worked as a freelancer, was not given a contract extension.
Huawei rejects the allegation
Huawei Germany rejected the allegations at the request of Welt am Sonntag . The company said the process had been checked internally. Neither “external legal or contractual provisions nor internal guidelines were violated at any time”. An infringement of intellectual property rights never took place and was never planned or intended. Huawei did not comment on the stated consequences for the employees concerned.
5G problem
Huawei is one of the world's largest telecommunications equipment suppliers and a leader in 5G technology. In numerous countries, including Germany, there are concerns that Huawei technology could be a gateway for Chinese espionage or sabotage. The USA and Great Britain have therefore excluded the company from setting up their 5G networks and are putting pressure on European countries to do the same.
