Trump FCC probes Biden cybersecurity program over China security concerns

FIRST ON FOX – President Donald Trump’s Federal Communication Commission (FCC) is pumping the brakes on a Biden administration cybersecurity program and launching an investigation to ensure alleged “deep ties” to China don’t threaten or undermine national security. 

Fox News Digital has reviewed an internal FCC document that outlines “national security concerns” with the U.S. Cyber Trust Mark (USCTM) program. The FCC’s Council on National Security is investigating the program to determine its future.  

The USCTM, which was codified in 2024 during the Biden administration and adopted unanimously, is a voluntary device testing program. It was designed to be a safety label that would appear on IoT smart products, including home security cameras, TVs, internet-connected appliances, fitness trackers and baby monitors that were sold in the United States and help consumers make informed decisions about the safety of devices. The Cyber Trust Mark was intended to signal that a device meets a set of security standards approved by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

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An FCC insider told Fox News Digital that the project was “rushed” by the Biden administration but is currently in “limbo.” Trump-appointed FCC chairman Brendan Carr, who initially voted for the program but has since grown concerned about its implementation, wants to ensure everything involved is fully vetted and won’t harm the American people. 

Under the Biden administration, the FCC approved UL Solutions LLC as the Lead Administrator for the program, making it responsible for testing procedures, ensuring products continue to comply with USCTM rules once in the market and educating the public on the program and its importance. 

Chairman Carr has instructed the Council on National Security to “investigate certain worrying issues he has discovered” about UL Solutions LLC and the other Cybersecurity Label Administrators because of alleged ties to China. 

“Chairman Carr is considering next steps to ensure the USCTM program does not become a back door to CCP sabotage,” the internal document explained.

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The U.S. Cyber Trust Mark is a label designed for consumer smart devices, including home security cameras, TVs, internet-connected appliances, fitness trackers, climate control systems and baby monitors. (FCC)

“At present, Chinese IoT products, or using Chinese IoT modules, can get the USCTM Label as easily as American products,” the document continued. “Although UL Solutions is domestically-owned, it has deep ties to China.”

The FCC internal document states that UL Solutions “has a joint venture in China with China National Import and Export Commodities Inspection Corp.”, which will “be excluded from the FCC’s equipment authorization program” under newly adopted rules.  

UL Solutions also “has 18 China-based testing locations,” with three “particularly alarming” locations and has not “shied away from its China ties since being approved” to lead the project. 

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Fox News Digital has reviewed an internal FCC document that outlines “national security concerns” with the U.S. Cyber Trust Mark (USCTM) program.  (FCC)

“In fact, even as UL has been working with the FCC to finalize its USCTM procedures, UL issued a press release in March touting its ‘new, state-of-the-art facility’ in China that ‘boosts testing capabilities for electromagnetic compatibility, wireless, telecommunications, automotive and Internet of Things products,’” the FCC internal document states. 

“We cannot comment on the specific details of this U.S. government program,” a company spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “As a leading American safety science company with operations around the globe and roots that go back more than 130 years, UL Solutions takes cybersecurity very seriously and has always operated with transparency and integrity.”

Michigan Republican Rep. John Moolenaar, who chairs the House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, supports the FCC’s efforts to strengthen the program. 

“The idea behind the Cyber Trust Mark is sound—consumers deserve to know which devices are secure. However, under the current setup, Chinese companies with ties to the CCP could use this program to get a U.S. government-backed stamp of approval,” Moolenaar said. “That’s not just misleading—it’s dangerous. We can’t let a cybersecurity label give Americans a false sense of safety while handing Beijing a loaded gun inside our own networks. Chairman Carr is right to raise the alarm, and the Select Committee strongly supports efforts to ensure this program strengthens our defenses, not China’s position.”

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Cybersecurity Label Administrators were also selected under the Biden administration to provide the laboratories and product testing services and authorize companies to use the U.S. Cyber Trust Mark. The FCC found that “several” of these Cybersecurity Label Administrators also have “concerning” ties to China, such as China-based affiliates. 

Carr was previously the senior Republican member of the FCC, first nominated to the commission by Trump in 2017.