China has banned government agencies from purchasing Apple hardware products due to security concerns, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing government officials familiar with the matter.
Ten Apple products including versions of the iPad tablet and MacBook laptop have been omitted from a government procurement list distributed by China’s National Development and Reform Commission and Ministry of Finance, Bloomberg News said. They were included in a June draft, according to the report.
The ban would apply to all central and local agencies in China.
Officials at the NDRC and finance ministry could not be immediately reached for comment. Apple spokespeople in China did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The report comes after the Chinese government published a software procurement list last week that excluded foreign anti-virus vendors like Kaspersky Lab and Symantec Corp, which had previously sold software to Chinese agencies.
China, citing security concerns, has increasingly sought to limit the use of U.S. technology over the past year following revelations by Edward Snowden of widespread U.S. government spying.
State-run China Central Television said in a report in June that location-tracking software on Apple’s iPhone could potentially lead to the disclosure of state secrets.
Apple swiftly denied those accusations.
“Apple is deeply committed to protecting the privacy of all our customers,” the company wrote in its response.
“Privacy is built into our products and services from the earliest stages of design. We work tirelessly to deliver the most secure hardware and software in the world.”
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