The Federal Communications Commission has proposed rules to safeguard wireless equipment authorizations from being compromised by entities that have been found to pose risks to national security.
FCC said Thursday the notice of proposed rulemaking would prohibit all entities on the ‘Covered List’ from taking a role in the equipment authorization program and implement a 5 percent ownership reporting threshold as part of efforts to capture all foreign interests that present national security concerns.
The commission is soliciting public comments on how it should consider national security determinations made in other agency’s covered lists when it comes to developing eligibility qualifications for recognizing telecommunications certification bodies — a.k.a. TCBs — or test laboratories in the equipment authorization program.
The proposed rules seek to prevent untrustworthy actors from influencing TCBs and test labs that participate in the FCC’s certification program for electronic devices.
“This action is part of a broader effort at this agency to make network security a priority,” FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement published Thursday.