(Jan 15): China has instructed companies in the country not to use cybersecurity products from American and Israeli firms including Palo Alto Networks Inc, Fortinet Inc and Check Point Software Technologies Ltd, according to a government directive seen by Bloomberg News.
The instructions require organisations to identify whether they use any cybersecurity products from the designated companies and to replace any of those with domestic technologies by the first half of 2026. Chinese companies’ use of such products could result in sensitive data being sent overseas or create other vulnerabilities for customers, according to the advisory.
The document also accused the US and Israeli companies of having ties to intelligence agencies, though it didn’t provide evidence of those claims or clarify the security issues involved.
“Recent work has found that cybersecurity products from Palo Alto Networks, a company with a US-Western intelligence background, have security issues,” said a notice by the securities regulatory bureau seen by Bloomberg News and dated Dec 19, 2025. Palo Alto Networks didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
The US government has similarly restricted the use of products from some Chinese companies among government entities, citing security concerns.
Recorded Future Inc, CrowdStrike Holdings Inc, Alphabet Inc’s Mandiant, Rapid7 Inc, SentinelOne Inc, Claroty Ltd, Cato Networks Ltd, Imperva Inc, CyberArk, Wiz Inc, Broadcom Inc’s VMWare, McAfee Corp and Orca Security Ltd also are included in the ban.
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Recorded Future, CrowdStrike, SentinelOne and Claroty don’t sell products in China, according to representatives from each company.
A McAfee spokesperson said in a statement that the company’s products are designed for individuals and families, rather than government use. “We continuously monitor regulatory developments worldwide and ensure that our products comply with all applicable laws and requirements in the geographies where we operate,” the spokesperson said.
“Orca Security has not been notified about this,” said Gil Geron, the chief executive officer of Orca Security.
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“We believe access to effective, defensive security tools is essential to supporting secure business operations around the world and this would be a step in the wrong direction to deny this level of protection,” he said.
None of the other aforementioned firms immediately responded to requests for comment.
Reuters previously reported on the Chinese directive.
Uploaded by Isabelle Francis
