TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's government planning committee on Tuesday (Sept. 3) unveiled the striking main visual for this year's National Day celebration, stressing that the creative team members were not Chinese nationals.
Social media users on Threads recently discovered simplified Chinese characters in the website's source code, raising concerns about Chinese involvement in its design. The committee clarified in a press release that the contract explicitly prohibits Chinese nationals and the use of Chinese-brand ICT products in the project.
The committee explained that the simplified characters resulted from language model queries used by the contractor to resolve design issues. The contractor has since corrected this.
The committee assured that the website underwent penetration testing and vulnerability scans by the Ministry of Digital Affairs' Administration for Cyber Security and third-party firms before its launch.
To protect the website's cybersecurity, the committee implemented a content delivery network, a web application firewall, an intrusion prevention system, and antivirus mechanisms.
The committee urged the public to trust that the website was created by local Taiwanese firms and thanked everyone for their suggestions and support, promising ongoing improvements.
The committee's secretary general, Deputy Interior Minister Wu Tang-an (吳堂安), stated that this year's theme is "Happy Birthday, Republic of China" and the visual combines red and blue double-ten shapes with plum blossoms.