Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr has created a new Council for National Security within the FCC to oversee telecom supply chain risks, cyber threats, and emerging technologies.
The FCC said the new council will promote America’s national security and counter foreign adversaries, particularly the threats posed by the People’s Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party.
Chairman Carr also named Adam Chan, his national security counsel, as the first director of the FCC’s Council on National Security.
“Today, the country faces a persistent and constant threat from foreign adversaries, particularly the CCP,” Chairman Carr said in a March 13 press release. “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,” he added. “Because these threats now cut across a range of sectors that the FCC regulates, it is important that the FCC’s national security efforts pull resources from a variety of FCC organizations.”
The council has a three-part goal, the first of which is focused on reducing the U.S. technology and telecommunications sectors’ trade and supply chain dependencies on foreign adversaries.
The second goal of the council is to mitigate America’s vulnerabilities to cyberattacks, espionage, and surveillance by foreign adversaries.
Finally, the third goal is to “ensure the U.S. wins the strategic competition with China over critical technologies, such as 5G and 6G, AI, satellites and space, quantum computing, robotics and autonomous systems, and the Internet of Things.”
The agency said the council will be comprised of representatives from eight bureaus and offices within the FCC, promoting cross-agency collaboration. The council will also facilitate the FCC’s engagement with national security partners across Congress and the executive branch.
