US Bans Foreign Robots Over National Security and Supply Chain Risks
National Security Determination Threat Posed by Foreign-Produced Robotic Devices [pdf]
The Trump Administration has declared foreign-produced advanced robotic devices an unacceptable national security threat. These systems pose critical risks through vulnerable supply chains and cybersecurity weaknesses that could compromise critical infrastructure and military operations. To protect American interests, the government is mandating a secure domestic supply chain and restricting reliance on foreign robotics.
Relying on foreign-produced advanced robotic devices presents unacceptable supply chain and cybersecurity vulnerabilities.
- revolvingthrow
Ah, the newly popular "let's make the policy unusually broad and treat all foreign production as presumptively dangerous, regardless of country, manufacturer or security practices, this way we're more transparent about prioritizing a bribe rather than our stated concerns".
> Advanced robotic devices are inherently networked systems which creates broad attack surfaces and leaves them vulnerable to data exfiltration, remote disruption of the physical robot, and dependencies on unsecure over the air updates.
Good thing this isn't a concern in ones produced locally.
- Lendal
The irony is this will harm US manufacturing, not help it. Manufacturing is the sector that most depends on robotics. Companies will now have to sue the administration so they can continue operations without this new regulatory hindrance. I thought this president was supposed to eliminate regulations, not impose newer and stupider ones.
- Georgelemental
> In response to this threat, the White House convened an executive branch interagency body with
appropriate national security expertise, see 47 U.S.C. § 1601(c)(1), comprising agencies that
included appropriate national security agencies, id. § 1601(c)(4), which determined jointly and
severally that: All foreign-produced advanced robotic devices pose an unacceptable risk to the
national security of the United States and to the safety and security of U.S. persons and should be
included on the FCC’s Covered List, unless the Department of War (DOW) transmits to the FCC
a specific determination that a given foreign-produced advanced robotic device, or a class of
such devices, does not pose such risks. The interagency group and the agencies comprising it
determined that foreign-produced advanced robotic devices presented the specific unacceptable
risks of (a) posing a supply chain vulnerability that could disrupt U.S. economic and national
security, and (b) creating a cybersecurity risk that threatens the security of critical infrastructure
and thus the safety and security of U.S. persons.
>
> To facilitate this transition period, entities that produce advanced robotic devices in a foreign
country are encouraged to apply for Conditional Approvals (Annex A) which, if approved, will
allow such producers to continue to receive FCC authorization for their products while they work
to onshore manufacturing and address the U.S. government’s national security concerns
described above.
- passwordoops
Amazingly ironic that the administration most deeply in bed to the finance sector's bidding is now identifying the result of the finance sector's 50 year push to offshore everything a problem for National security
- hn_submit
Why doesn't the U.S. simply ban all Chinese products that have an internet-connected computer in them? That would solve almost all security problems in one strike and force Chinese manufacturers to communicate via Bluetooth and update software through USB sticks or memory cards.
The apps communicating with said devices through Bluetooth obviously can't connect to the internet either otherwise there'd still be an avenue for subversion.
Just banning one Chinese product category at a time willy nilly doesn't help as there are a zillion other product categories of Chinese stuff with internet connections. From toys (with camera's in them), to refrigerators, power converters, microwaves, televisions to smartphones.