The Federal Communications Commission plans to vote next month on a rule that would ban the sale of any device containing components from firms on its “Covered List,” a roster of companies the agency considers national security threats. The vote, announced on June 30, would close a gap in existing regulations that most consumers probably didn’t know existed.
Here’s the thing. The US already bars telecom equipment made by companies like Huawei and ZTE from American networks. But a smartphone with a chip designed by Huawei’s HiSilicon semiconductor unit? That can still land on a shelf at your local electronics retailer. The proposed rule would end that distinction.
What the loophole actually looks like
The FCC’s Covered List, which has included companies like Huawei Technologies, ZTE, Hangzhou Hikvision, Dahua Technology, Hytera, China Mobile, and China Telecom since March 2021, was originally designed to keep these firms’ own branded equipment off US telecom networks. In 2022, the FCC moved to bar new telecom authorizations for listed companies. But consumer electronics containing components sourced from those same firms were never explicitly covered. A device maker could integrate a blacklisted company’s chip into a phone or tablet and sell it in the US without running afoul of the rules.
