The Federal Communications Commission is set to ban foreign products in two specific categories that affect national security.
On Monday, the FCC released its determination that also revealed a glimpse into what the United States military has up its sleeves in terms of autonomous warfare.
‘The US military is already pursuing advanced robotics for autonomous breaching.’
The United States has decided to ban “Foreign-Produced Advanced Robotic Devices,” citing that they are often equipped with sensors, light detectors, and other technology that “collect and maintain sensitive data on their surroundings.”
The national security brief noted that such data must be protected and maintained in the United States, and with that, foreign-made robots cannot be trusted.
At the same time, the summary determination stated that the government believes “advanced robotic devices such as Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs) and quadrupeds will be essential to the modern battlefield.”
The document continued, describing just what type of missions robots will be involved in through the armed forces.
“The U.S. military is already pursuing advanced robotics for autonomous breaching, resupply missions, force protection, and offensive strike.”
It was also noted that unmanned ground vehicles being used in “current conflicts” have been able to “inflict casualties while offsetting the effects of exquisite conventional capabilities.”
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The FCC summarized its ban with supplemental claims that “advanced robotic systems create extensive vulnerabilities and vectors for attacks that can manipulate the data and physical operation of the advanced robotic system.”
It is for that reason, they said, that relying on foreign-produced advanced robotics presents “unacceptable supply chain and cybersecurity vulnerabilities.”
Second on the FCC’s list was a ban on “Foreign-Produced Power Inverters.”
The government agency explained that power inverters convert direct current electricity into alternating current electricity and facilitate the connection of certain DC energy sources — like solar panel — into the predominantly AC-based U.S. energy grid.
Therefore, it was the FCC’s determination that foreign-made products of this type could threaten “sectors critical to national security,” “cybersecurity,” and overall, the safety of Americans.
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The FCC explained that introducing foreign-made power inverters could render the equivalent of 46 nuclear power plants useless if they were to be used in an attack. Approximately 46 gigawatts of electric power on the U.S. grid relies on inverters and will reportedly account for a larger part of new power generation moving forward.
These statements were among many related to the introduction of massive power-sucking sources like data centers, which the FCC said are putting further strain on an already weak grid. It was the U.S. government’s determination that the grid needed to be protected from foreign intervention before it is too late.
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