Midea Recognized as First Company in China to Achieve UL's IoT Security Rating

UL verifies IoT security claims of Midea air conditioning and dehumidifier product lines meeting critical cybersecurity benchmarks

NORTHBROOK, Ill., June 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- UL, a leading global safety science company, today announced that Midea is the first company in China to be recognized for achieving UL's IoT Security Rating. These silver level ratings, as evaluated by UL, demonstrate that four of Midea's air conditioning and dehumidifier product lines use industry best practices for Internet of Things (IoT) cybersecurity.

Midea, headquartered in Foshan in southern China, is a global Fortune 500 company with over 100,000 employees and operations in more than 180 countries that specializes in air treatment, refrigeration, laundry, large cooking appliances, large and small kitchen appliances, water appliances, floor care and lighting.

UL's IoT Security Rating silver level assessment helps demonstrate baseline security capabilities across all connected products under Midea's window air conditioner, split air conditioner, portable air conditioner and dehumidifier product lines. These product lines were assessed to silver level according to their implementation of vital baseline security capabilities, such as no default passwords, secure updates and connections, access controls and product security maintenance, among others.

The IoT Security Rating is a security claim verification and labeling solution for consumer IoT products that categorizes products according to an ascending five-level scale: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum and Diamond. Verified products receive a differentiated UL Verified Mark security label – specifying the achieved security level – and are evaluated on an ongoing basis by UL.

UL's solution helps manufacturers and developers demonstrate the security due diligence of their products by leveraging proven security best practices and rating the security posture of IoT products. This helps to improve the transparency of security with consumers and assist them in making conscious and informed purchasing decisions. UL's IoT Security Rating also supports manufacturers by helping to demonstrate that their products meet the threshold of reasonable security features as required in U.S. IoT security regulations and recommended in global IoT security guidelines.

Midea's unique UL Verified Mark codes can be accessed on the UL Verify website (window air conditioner, split air conditioner, portable air conditioner and dehumidifier product lines). Midea will be utilizing the UL Verified Mark on their products, packaging, marketing and retail environments to demonstrate their security posture to customers. 

"At Midea, we are committed to helping our customers enjoy their homes, and ensuring the security of our connected products is an essential part of that commitment. We incorporate sound security principles into our product development process and look to demonstrate that to our customers," said Hsiang-Chih Hsu, IoT chief security head, Midea. "We're extremely pleased to have achieved the silver level of UL's IoT Security Rating, and we believe UL's third-party verification and our commitment to their IoT Security Rating solution throughout the product lifecycle, helps Midea continue to put our customer's peace of mind first while protecting against security threats."

"As part of UL's decades of cybersecurity experience and rapidly growing IoT security practice, we are proud to recognize Midea for earning the first IoT Security Rating for a company in China" said Isabelle Noblanc, global vice president and general manager of UL's Identity Management and Security division.  "We're proud that our China laboratory was able to support Midea's security assessment needs. This silver level rating achievement helps verify the security due diligence Midea has built into their connected products, helps demonstrate their cybersecurity posture to retailers and regulators and empowers consumers to make purchase decisions based on the security built into Midea connected products." 

As a provider of essential services, UL remains open to help customers safely and securely get products to market. With the rapidly emerging demands and evolving conditions of today's environment, UL has identified opportunities for remote witnessed testing (RWT) and with a global network of test facilities, UL is able to support customers with available lab facilities. To conduct Midea's IoT Security Rating testing, UL's laboratory in Nansha, China was able to expedite testing, once regional authorities and UL deemed it safe to open the facility. 

About UL

UL helps create a better world by applying science to solve safety, security and sustainability challenges. We empower trust by enabling the safe adoption of innovative new products and technologies. Everyone at UL shares a passion to make the world a safer place. All of our work, from independent research and standards development, to testing and certification, to providing analytical and digital solutions, helps improve global well-being. Businesses, industries, governments, regulatory authorities and the public put their trust in us so they can make smarter decisions. To learn more, visit UL.com. To learn more about our nonprofit activities, visit UL.org. 

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SOURCE UL