The FCC adopted a Third Report and Order on July 22, 2026, further tightening its Covered List rules under the Secure Networks Act, according to a client alert from Akin Gump. The new order bans authorization of “logic-bearing hardware components”—chips, chipsets, IoT modules, and similar parts—made by any Covered List entity, even when installed in end products from other manufacturers, effective October 13, 2026.
The Covered List itself now also sweeps in broader categories of foreign-produced gear, including unmanned aircraft systems, UAS critical components, routers, power inverters, and advanced robotic devices. Separately, the FCC extended its jurisdiction to online marketplaces that provide fulfillment, warehousing, or billing for third-party listings, requiring them to verify and display valid FCC IDs at the point of sale, with compliance deadlines of March 1, 2027, and June 1, 2027. The order also mandates full recertification for any modification of previously authorized equipment once that equipment lands on the Covered List, and it narrows the FCC’s definition of “critical infrastructure” to align strictly with statutory and DHS language after a D.C. Circuit ruling vacated the agency’s broader version.
Full analysis: Akin Gump: FCC Expands Supply Chain Bans, Implicating Online Marketplaces and Clarifying Covered List Rules