The U.S. Federal Communications Commission today opened a probe into more than a half-dozen Chinese electronics suppliers and internet providers. 

The companies in question were previously ordered either to scale back or to shut down their U.S. operations. According to the FCC, the newly launched probe will seek to determine whether the firms may be trying to get around the ban.

“We have reason to believe that, despite those actions, some or all of these Covered List entities are trying to make an end run around those FCC prohibitions by continuing to do business in America on a private or ‘unregulated’ basis,” said FCC Chair Brendan Carr.

The investigation will see FCC officials investigate Huawei Technologies Co. and ZTE Corp., two of China’s largest handset makers. The companies’ other core focus area is providing network equipment for telecommunications providers. As part of the investigation, the FCC will also probe three additional electronics suppliers that make communications hardware and related products. 

In 2022, the FCC added the companies’ products to its Covered List. This is a database of communications equipment and services that pose a risk to national security. Products on the Covered List can’t be sold in the U.S. 

The other companies that the FCC will investigate as part of the newly launched probe include several telecommunications providers. The U.S. units of China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom are among the affected firms. Like the electronics makers that the FCC is probing, the three carriers have seen U.S. regulators limit their stateside presence in recent years. 

In 2019, the FCC ordered China Mobile to stop providing phone services to U.S. users. The agency issued similar bans to China Telecom and China Unicom in 2021 and 2022, respectively.

Last December, the U.S. Commerce Department took steps to shut down China Telecom’s remaining stateside operations. According to The New York Times, officials set out to ban the company’s cloud services and peering systems. Peering is a practice whereby internet providers exchange user traffic between their networks. 

The FCC will seek to determine whether the companies it’s investigating still have a U.S. presence “either because they do not believe the FCC’s Covered List prohibits particular types of operations or otherwise.” Additionally, officials will investigate whether other businesses may be helping the companies maintain that presence. The FCC has already issued multiple letters of inquiry and “at least one subpoena” as part of the probe. 

The investigation is being led by the FCC’s Council on National Security, which was formed last week. It includes representatives from eight of the agency’s bureaus and offices. One of the council’s responsibilities is tackling supply chain risks in the U.S. telecommunications sectors. 

Photo: FCC