On 7 October 2025 the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) published the agenda for its October open meeting, including a draft second report and order and a draft second further notice of proposed rulemaking on the Covered List.

Tighter security oversight

The draft second report and order marks a further tightening of US policy on the security of communications equipment, aimed particularly at devices and technologies that carry potential risk.

Key points of the draft order

According to information disclosed so far, the draft focuses on the following:

1. Modules brought into scope. For the first time the draft explicitly treats module devices as covered equipment, meaning that not only finished devices but also the core modules inside them face equally strict regulatory scrutiny.

2. No certification based on covered modules. The FCC plans to prohibit equipment certification for any device based on a covered module, blocking potentially unsafe equipment from entering the US market at source.

3. Import and sale prohibition procedures. The draft proposes a dedicated procedure to prohibit the import and sale of covered equipment that has already been certified, meaning devices certified earlier may still be removed retroactively.

4. No modifications to covered equipment. To prevent circumvention through technical changes, the draft explicitly prohibits any form of modification to covered equipment, closing a further potential loophole.

Public consultation

At the same time the FCC issued a draft second further notice of proposed rulemaking seeking comment on:

(1) Defining critical infrastructure. The precise scope of critical infrastructure is not yet fully defined, and the FCC wants to refine the definition through comment so that the measures are better targeted and workable.

(2) Strengthening measures to keep covered equipment out of the market. The notice also examines how to reinforce market entry bans, including improving enforcement mechanisms and cross-agency coordination, to build a more comprehensive line of defence.