U.S. FCC Completely Bans Chinese Testing Laboratories from Certification of U.S. Electronic Products
FCC Chairperson: “82% of Last Year’s Certification Exams Conducted in China… Risk of Intellectual Property Theft”
Under the new regulations, electronic devices such as smartphones, cameras, and computers must be tested by an FCC-approved testing laboratory within the U.S. or by a testing laboratory within a reciprocal economic zone to be used or sold in the United States.
The new regulations are scheduled to take effect starting in December 2028.
The FCC explained that currently, less than 4% of all electronic devices are being tested in U.S. laboratories, attributing this to the fact that the United States has abandoned the principle of reciprocity in trade over the past few decades.
FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr pointed out that 82% of devices that applied for FCC certification last year were tested at laboratories in China, stating, “These laboratories are key gateways into U.S. telecommunications infrastructure, and thanks to their privileged status, they can access sensitive confidential information about electronic products months before the devices are released to the market.”
He added, “Equipment with weak security could enter the U.S. market, disrupt communication networks, or steal intellectual property.”
Reuters explained that this regulation is a follow-up to the “bad laboratory” regulations adopted by the FCC last May. At the time, the regulations prohibited entities posing a national security threat, such as foreign hostile nations, from owning or controlling laboratories.
In line with the Donald Trump administration’s stance on strengthening national security, the FCC has been raising the level of regulation to prevent Chinese technology products from entering critical high-tech infrastructure sectors, such as advanced robots, power inverters, and wireless routers.
Last October, the FCC moved to revoke the U.S. operating license of Hong Kong telecommunications operator HKT, and in December of the same year, it banned the import of new Chinese drones. Last March, it also blocked the import of new Chinese consumer router models.
In addition, to protect critical infrastructure, it is restricting the activities of Chinese companies within the United States by compiling a “Covered List” of firms deemed a threat to national security and including several Chinese companies on the list.
The FCC added Chinese telecommunications equipment companies, including Huawei and ZTE, to this list in 2021 and banned the sale of their telecommunications equipment in the United States starting the following year.
Meanwhile, the FCC announced that it will vote on a proposal to strengthen the requirements for VoIP providers to be directly assigned U.S. phone numbers at its meeting on the 19th of next month.
Reuters explained that the new regulations include provisions preventing China-based carriers such as China Mobile, China Telecom, and China Unicom from directly accessing U.S. phone numbers for reasons of national security.