The U.S. headquarters of the Chinese corporation Lenovo are located in North Carolina. The state is concerned about the company’s ties to China. The federal government lists China as a foreign foe, a designation that has been in place during both Democratic and Republican presidential administrations.
According to the lawsuit, the state failed to perform a security evaluation to ascertain whether any particular hardware manufactured by any company poses a security risk.
David Hamilton, a spokesman for Lenovo, said in a statement that the firm was not given the chance to provide proof or get clarification regarding its legal authority to carry out current commitments. Before the new law, the corporation had long-standing and comprehensive contracts with several governmental entities.
According to him, Lenovo has a long history of adhering to industry-leading security standards and has been a trusted technology supplier to the Georgia state government and the US government for decades.
Attorney General Chris Carr’s spokesperson, Kara Murray, who speaks for the state in court, refused to comment.
The bill’s sponsor, Cumming Republican state representative Lauren McDonald III, was also contacted by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
“The state should follow the federal government’s lead regarding Lenovo’s status and in determining whether other equipment is safe to use,” said State Representative Long Tran, a Democrat and the chair of the Asian American and Pacific Islander caucus.
He claimed that state universities have difficulties as a result of the law. In response to the new law’s introduction, Georgia Tech said in July that no new Lenovo products could be bought.
Does that imply that students are prohibited from using Lenovo laptops and tablets on campus? “Tran said.” I certainly believe there are many unforeseen effects.
Lenovo is requesting that the court declare the state’s ban on buying its products to be illegal, null and void, and unenforceable.
