FCC Considers Blocking Devices From Chinese Gearmakers
The Federal Communications Commission is exploring whether untrusted vendors should be excluded from the FCC equipment authorization program, acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said April 26 at a virtual workshop on supply chain security, held in conjunction with the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. “When it comes to network security, the threats are real, the stakes are high, and our defenses need to constantly evolve and improve,” Rosenworcel said. Just saying no isn’t a strategy, “so we’re moving fast,” she said.
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Commissioner Brendan Carr said he is “very pleased” that Rosenworcel mentioned barring devices from covered list companies from being certified by labs under FCC rules. “I look forward to continuing to work with her and my colleagues at the FCC to move that forward,” he said: “We can’t move too fast … given the threats.” Carr previously urged blocking gear from Chinese vendors from being certified by the FCC to make sure no devices enter the U.S. that are produced with forced labor (see 2103300072). An FCC spokesperson said then that Rosenworcel was already looking at equipment authorization.
“Revisit this process to explore how it can be used to encourage device manufacturers to build security into new products,” Commissioner Nathan Simington said. The FCC could build on the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s draft recommendations for making Internet of Things devices more secure, he said. “We cannot forget connected consumer and industrial IoT devices and the physical layer security improvements that the commission is uniquely poised to address.”