Japan rules out asking private firms to avoid telecoms gear that could be malicious

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's government has no plan to ask private companies to avoid buying telecommunications equipment that could have malicious functions, such as information leakage, its top spokesman, Yoshihide Suga, said on Thursday.

The comment suggests Japan does not intend, for the moment, to extend to private firms a policy of not buying such equipment for the government, after it issued a policy document on Monday on the need to maintain cybersecurity during procurement.

While China's telecoms equipment supplier Huawei Technologies, and ZTE (HKSE:0763.HK - News) are not explicitly named, sources said last week the change aimed at preventing government procurement from the two Chinese makers.

(Reporting by Chang-Ran Kim and Sam Nussey; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)