The US Federal Communications Commission has banned the import and sale of electronic devices containing surveillance semiconductors made by a subsidiary of China's Huawei, marking the first time sanctions have been extended from finished telecommunications equipment to the "smart" components inside them.
The FCC's Office of Engineering and Technology announced Thursday that it had confirmed two devices — a dashcam and a wireless video transmitter — contained surveillance chips made by HiSilicon, a Huawei subsidiary, and barred their retail sale in the United States.
HiSilicon has marketed the chips as "designed for the surveillance market" and featuring built-in human facial recognition algorithms.
The action marks the first enforcement under the FCC's "logic circuit (smart) component" regulation, which took effect Oct. 13. The agency's existing rules had prohibited approval only for finished devices made directly by sanctioned companies; the new regulation extends that prohibition to any device incorporating smart components produced by those companies. HiSilicon, as a Huawei subsidiary, is listed on the US government's roster of national security threat entities.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said in a statement that video devices containing surveillance chips made by national security threat companies "pose a clear and unacceptable risk to our nation and our people," adding that the agency would "continue to act decisively to strictly enforce our rules and protect the security of America's communications networks."
He said the Office of Engineering and Technology had also prevented potential spyware from receiving sales approval in the United States.
The FCC has been tightening regulations to keep Chinese technology products out of critical advanced infrastructure sectors — including advanced robots, power inverters and wireless routers — in line with the Trump administration's push to strengthen national security.
kate01@heraldcorp.com
