FCC Opens National Security Investigation Into Blacklisted CCP-Linked Tech Firms

Nine CCP-linked firms are suspected of quietly operating in the United States despite being blacklisted over risks to U.S. national security.

Top L: A ZTE sign. (David Ramos/Getty Images) Bottom L: A Huawei sign. (Pau Barrena/AFP via Getty Images) R: A Hikvision sign. STR/AFP via Getty Images

The Federal Communications Commission has launched a sweeping new investigation into firms aligned with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) that may still be operating in the United States after being blacklisted due to national security concerns.

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announced the initiative on March 21, calling it the first major action led by the agency’s newly formed Council on National Security, which he formally unveiled last week. The council’s mission includes preventing cyber attacks on critical U.S. infrastructure and rooting out foreign espionage threats.

The probe focuses on whether firms like Huawei, ZTE, China Telecom, and others—previously placed on the FCC’s “Covered List“ due to their equipment and services posing unacceptable risks—continue to operate in the United States through regulatory loopholes or informal channels.

“The FCC has taken concrete actions to address the threats posed by Huawei, ZTE, China Telecom, and many other entities that pose an unacceptable risk to America’s national security, including by doing Communist China’s bidding,” Carr said in a statement. “To safeguard our networks, the FCC has placed those CCP-aligned entities on our Covered List, and we have revoked many of the FCC authorizations that they had been operating under.”

Carr said that despite those actions, the agency has reason to believe some firms may still be doing business on an unregulated or private basis. As part of its investigation, the FCC has issued letters of inquiry and at least one subpoena.

“We are not going to just look the other way,” Carr said. “The FCC, working through our new Council on National Security and in coordination with partners across the Federal government, will identify the scope of their ongoing activities and move quickly to close any loopholes that have permitted untrustworthy, foreign adversary state-backed actors to skirt our rules.”

The nine entities targeted in the investigation are Huawei Technologies Company, ZTE Corporation, Hytera Communications Corporation, Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Company, Dahua Technology Company, China Mobile International USA Inc., China Telecom (Americas) Corp., Pacifica Networks Corp./ComNet (USA) LLC, and China Unicom (Americas) Operations Ltd.

The Epoch Times has reached out to all of the companies for comment except Pacifica Networks, for which no press contact was available. Both Huawei and ZTE have previously denied that their operations pose a threat to U.S. national security.

The Council on National Security was launched on March 13 as part of Carr’s broader effort to align the FCC more closely with national security goals. The council is tasked with reducing U.S. technology and telecommunications dependency on foreign adversaries, preventing espionage and cyberattacks, and bolstering American leadership in critical technology sectors, including AI, robotics, and space systems.

“Today, the country faces a persistent and constant threat from foreign adversaries, particularly the CCP,” Carr said in a statement. “These bad actors are always exploring ways to breach our networks, devices, and technology ecosystem. It is more important than ever that the FCC remain vigilant and protect Americans and American companies from these threats.”

The FCC’s action comes amid growing concerns over Chinese state-sponsored cyber intrusions. Recent reports suggest that CCP-backed hackers infiltrated at least eight U.S. telecom networks, in some cases maintaining access for months. The attacks are part of a broader campaign tied to groups such as Volt Typhoon, Silk Typhoon, Salt Typhoon, and Flax Typhoon.

At a congressional hearing earlier this month titled “End the Typhoons,” former National Security Agency (NSA) cybersecurity director Rob Joyce warned lawmakers that Chinese state hackers had prepositioned malware within critical U.S. infrastructure such as power grids, pipelines, and water treatment plants.

“They tapped into our telecommunications to spy on us, stole the innovations of technological research, and breached the cloud systems holding government emails,” Joyce said, adding that China’s cyber operations now aim to create “societal panic” during times of rising tension.

He also said that the Chinese regime is flooding U.S. markets with state-controlled tech products while warning that this undercuts U.S. firms and raises significant national security concerns.

Lily Zhou contributed to this report.