Asian Tech Press (Jan 14) -- Germany's federal cybersecurity regulator, the BSI, said on Thursday in a notice that there is no evidence of censorship functions in smartphones made by Chinese company Xiaomi Corp (1810.HK).

In Agust last year, Lithuania's National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) under the Ministry of National Defence released an investigation report claiming that Xiaomi's flagship phones sold in Europe had a built-in feature to detect and censor some sensitive terms that violated the One-China Principle.

Following the release of the report, Lithuanian Vice Defense Minister Margiris Abukevicius urged the country's population through the media, "Our recommendation is to not buy new Chinese phones, and to get rid of those already purchased as fast as reasonably possible."

Faced with Lithuania's allegations, Germany began an investigation. After months of d review, Germany said it did not find any evidence of censorship functions in Xiaomi phones.

Reuters quoted a BSI spokesman as saying, "As a result, the BSI was unable to identify any anomalies that would require further investigation or other measures."

In response to the aforementioned report, the BSI specifically stated in the notice to Xiaomi that it was unable to detect the transmission of the filtered list mentioned in the original report.

A Xiaomi spokesperson said, "It was pleased that BSI confirmed Xiaomi's compliance with data privacy and security laws in the EU and various countries."

"Xiaomi has always valued the privacy and security of its customers and is committed to operating its business in a transparent and responsible manner, and will welcome future communications with users, regulators and other stakeholders," added the spokesperson.

According to Canalys, in the third quarter of 2021, Xiaomi ranked No. 2 in Europe with a smartphone market share of 21.5%, making it the top-selling Chinese cell phone company in Europe.