Biden Administration Announces Cybersecurity Labeling Program for Smart Devices

FILE PHOTO: Jessica Rosenworcel testifies during an oversight hearing held by the US Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee to examine the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in Washington, US June 24, 2020.   Alex Wong/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Jessica Rosenworcel testifies during an oversight hearing held by the US Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee to examine the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in Washington, US June 24, 2020. Alex Wong/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
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Biden Administration Announces Cybersecurity Labeling Program for Smart Devices

FILE PHOTO: Jessica Rosenworcel testifies during an oversight hearing held by the US Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee to examine the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in Washington, US June 24, 2020.   Alex Wong/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Jessica Rosenworcel testifies during an oversight hearing held by the US Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee to examine the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in Washington, US June 24, 2020. Alex Wong/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

The Biden administration and major consumer technology players on Tuesday launched an effort to put a nationwide cybersecurity certification and labeling program in place to help consumers choose smart devices that are less vulnerable to hacking.

Officials likened the new US Cyber Trust Mark initiative — to be overseen by the Federal Communications Commission, with industry participation voluntary — to the Energy Star program, which rates appliances’ energy efficiency.

“It will allow Americans to confidently identify which internet- and Bluetooth-connected devices are cybersecure,” deputy national security adviser Anne Neuberger told reporters in a pre-announcement briefing.

According to The Associated Press, she listed Amazon, Best Buy, Google, Samsung and Logitech as among industry participants.

Devices including baby monitors, home security cameras, fitness trackers, TVs, refrigerators and smart climate control systems that meet the US government’s cybersecurity requirements will bear the “Cyber Trust” label as early as next year, officials said.

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said the mark will give consumers “peace of mind” and benefit manufacturers, whose products would need to adhere to criteria set by the National Institute of Standards and Technology to qualify.

The FCC was launching a rule-making process to set the standards and seek public comment. Besides carrying logos, participating devices would have QR codes that could be scanned for updated security information.
In a statement, the Consumer Technology Association said consumers could expect to see certification-ready products at the industry’s annual January show, CES 2024, once the FCC adopts final rules. A senior Biden administration official said it was expected that products that qualify for the logo would undergo an annual re-certification.

The Cyber Trust initiative was first announced in October following a meeting between White House and tech industry representatives.

The proliferation of so-called smart — or Internet of Things — devices has coincided with growing cybercrime in which one insecure IoT device can often give a cyberintruder a dangerous foothold on a home network.

An April report from the cybersecurity firm Bitdefender and networking equipment company NetGear, based on their monitoring of smart homes, found that the most vulnerable IoT devices in 2022 were, far and away, smart TVs, followed by smart plugs, routers and digital video recorders.

Providers of numerous smart home devices often don’t update and patch software fast enough to thwart newly emerging malware threats.



TikTok Faces US Ban Deadline as Users Brace for Fallout

A social media influencer films a video for his new Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote, after leaving TikTok, in Times Square in New York City, US, January 16, 2025. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
A social media influencer films a video for his new Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote, after leaving TikTok, in Times Square in New York City, US, January 16, 2025. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
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TikTok Faces US Ban Deadline as Users Brace for Fallout

A social media influencer films a video for his new Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote, after leaving TikTok, in Times Square in New York City, US, January 16, 2025. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
A social media influencer films a video for his new Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote, after leaving TikTok, in Times Square in New York City, US, January 16, 2025. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

TikTok buzzed with nervous anticipation across the US on Saturday as a looming federal ban threatened to sever access to the Chinese-owned app that has captivated nearly half of all Americans, powered small businesses and shaped online culture.

The company said late Friday that it will go dark in the United States on Sunday unless President Joe Biden's administration provides assurances to companies like Apple and Google that they will not face enforcement actions when a ban takes effect.

The ban would be enacted under a law signed by President Joe Biden in April and mark the first US shutdown of a major social media app -- with TikTok boasting about 170 million domestic users and an estimated $20 billion in 2025 revenue.

The platform has until Sunday to cut ties with its China-based parent ByteDance or shut down its US operation to resolve concerns it posed a threat to national security.

Supreme Court justices upheld the ban on Friday in a unanimous decision and a White House statement suggested Biden would not take any action to save TikTok before the deadline.

Without a decision by Biden to formally invoke a 90-day delay in the deadline, companies providing services to TikTok or hosting the app could face legal liability. It is not clear if TikTok's business partners, including Apple, Alphabet's Google and Oracle, will continue doing business with it before Trump is inaugurated on Monday, according to Reuters.

Uncertainty over the app's future had sent users - mostly made up of younger people - scrambling to alternatives including China-based RedNote. Rivals Meta and Snap had also seen their shares rise this month ahead of the ban, as investors bet on an influx of users and ad dollars.

Marketing firms reliant on TikTok have rushed to prepare contingency plans this week in what one executive described as a "hair on fire" moment after months of conventional wisdom saying that a solution would materialize to keep the app running.

There have been signs that TikTok could make a comeback under incoming US President Donald Trump, who wants to pursue a "political resolution" of the issue and had last month urged the Supreme Court to pause implementation of the ban.

Trump said on Friday the decision on the future of the TikTok app will be up to him, but he did not provide any detail about what steps he would take. Media reports have said that he was considering an executive order that would suspend the enforcement of the TikTok sale-or-ban law for 60 to 90 days.

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew plans to attend the US presidential inauguration on Jan. 20 and sit among high-profile guests invited by Trump, a source told Reuters.

Suitors including former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt have expressed interest in the fast-growing business that analysts estimate could be worth as much as $50 billion. Media reports say Beijing has also held talks about selling TikTok's US operations to billionaire and Trump ally Elon Musk, though the company has denied that.

Privately held ByteDance is about 60% owned by institutional investors such as BlackRock and General Atlantic, while its founders and employees own 20% each. It has more than 7,000 employees in the US.