The Federal Communications Commission on Wednesday approved a rule that will bar devices sold in the United States if they contain essential hardware parts produced by Chinese companies the agency has identified as national security threats. The move follows an existing FCC list of firms, among them Huawei and ZTE, whose equipment has been blocked from sales in the U.S. on national security grounds.
FCC Chair Brendan Carr said the new policy will "fully close the component part loophole." Under the prior regime, devices manufactured by entities on the list had been prevented from receiving new authorizations since 2022. However, devices that incorporated component parts made by those listed companies could still be approved to enter the U.S. market. The updated rule explicitly forbids devices that include any Huawei-made logic-bearing hardware component.
Huawei did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The FCC's action reflects concerns that compromised parts can undermine entire devices. Chris McGuire, a former White House National Security Council official under former President Joe Biden, told reporters that "compromised components, particularly semiconductors or communications devices, can be used to corrupt entire devices."
Regulatory changes affecting Chinese technology have been expanding. The article notes that the Trump administration undertook a broad crackdown on Chinese tech equipment. Recently, the FCC moved to ban the import of additional equipment from a set of Chinese manufacturers effective July 16 and proposed a restriction on the import of most military-grade drones.
In recent months the FCC has also banned imports of new foreign drone and router models and floated a proposal that would bar U.S. telecommunications carriers from interconnecting with Chinese telecom firms the agency deems national security risks. Separately, the commission is weighing whether to prohibit Chinese telecom companies that operate data centers or Points of Presence within the United States from interconnecting with other companies. If enacted, that step would effectively force those Chinese firms to cease operating such U.S. centers.
The package of measures marks a tightening of U.S. policy toward Chinese telecommunications hardware and component parts, with implications for device manufacturers, carriers, and suppliers of semiconductors and communications components that serve the U.S. market.