US FCC blocks two devices over Huawei-linked HiVision chip — The Verge

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has for the first time exercised new powers and blocked two devices because they contain a chip the agency called a “foreign surveillance chip.” The Verge reports.

FCC’s new powers

On October 13, the FCC granted itself the authority to block devices if they contain computer chips from companies on a list of potential national security threats. The current decision was the first use of this mechanism.

The regulator did not name the specific devices it blocked and did not immediately respond to the publication’s request for comment. At the same time, the FCC indicated that it concerns the HiVision Hi3516CV610 UHD Smart Vision SoC system-on-chip.

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The HiVision chip

According to The Verge, this component processes the signal from a camera sensor and can be used, among other things, in home security cameras and dashcams. It is sold on AliExpress in kits with a Sony camera sensor and, in some cases, with a lens as well.

The FCC called the component a surveillance chip because HiVision advertises it as a solution for the surveillance systems market with built-in human face detection algorithms. The publication notes that HiVision is a Huawei subsidiary.

Huawei is included on the FCC’s Covered List, a list of companies the regulator links to potential national security threats. The new powers are intended to close the possibility of embedding products from such companies into devices made by other manufacturers. Previously, the FCC also granted itself the authority to retroactively ban devices and block modular radio transmitters.