Commissioner Carr calls for agency to add drone maker DJI to Covered List
China Tech Threat Co-Founder Dr. Roslyn Layton today lauded Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Brendan Carr’s announcement that SZ DJI Technology Co., Ltd. or Shenzhen DJI Sciences and Technologies Ltd. (“DJI”) should be added to the FCC’s “Covered List” of restricted equipment providers. The 2019 Secure and Trusted Networks Act describes the process for entities to be identified and added to the list because of the unacceptable risk they pose to national security. Commissioner Carr made the announcement during China Tech Threat’s event today addressing the need to expand the Covered List.
“We applaud Commissioner Carr’s leadership to bolster our national security by making DJI the next focus on the Covered List for its ties to China. The vulnerable People’s Republic of China (PRC) devices deployed in American homes, schools and workplaces compromise our household and national security, and should not be allowed to be exploited by loopholes in our own laws,” said China Tech Threat Co-Founder Dr. Roslyn Layton.
The announcement comes as the FCC undergoes a process to restrict equipment authorizations from companies on the agency’s Covered List, which currently includes Huawei Technologies, ZTE, Hytera Communications, Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology and Dahua Technology, that pose unacceptable risk to U.S. national security through the 2019 Secure and Trusted Networks Act.
On Monday, China Tech Threat filed reply comments in the FCC’s Covered List proceeding. The comments highlighted the fact that “equipment authorization is a privilege, not a right, for entities which uphold the laws of the US” and that the proposed regulation will open the playing field for lawful equipment providers.
In September, China Tech Threat and BluePath Labs filed joint comments with the FCC advising the agency on how to ensure the Covered List of vulnerable equipment vendors is current and relevant. The comments name two specific companies, Lenovo and YMTC, that evade U.S. regulation despite dangerous ties to the Chinese government and military.
“Americans think that the policies adopted at the federal level keep them safe, but they don’t. The Department of Defense has called out the unacceptable risk of PRC intrusion on Huawei smartphones, Lenovo laptops and YMTC chips, but these products are still widely available or installed in other consumer electronics. The FCC wants to close this loophole and has the Congressional mandate, authority, and capability to do so,” said Layton.