The Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC or Commission) Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau (“PSHSB” or “Bureau”) announced the addition of two new categories of equipment to the FCC’s Covered List: (1) foreign-produced power inverters and (2) foreign-produced advanced robotic devices. The additions are based on National Security Determinations (for Power Inverters and Advanced Robotic Devices) issued by an Executive Branch interagency body, convened pursuant to the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019, which concluded that these categories of equipment pose unacceptable risks to U.S. national security and the safety and security of U.S. persons. The determinations cite concerns that the equipment’s network connectivity, remote-access capabilities, and data collection functions could enable supply chain vulnerabilities, cyber intrusions, surveillance, or disruption of critical infrastructure and other sensitive operations.
As a result, this covered equipment may not receive FCC authorizations or be used in federally funded projects, although manufacturers may seek a Conditional Approval from the Department of War or Department of Homeland Security to continue marketing specific products or classes of these products in the United States.
