Regulator sides with telcos that claimed new cybersecurity duties were too ‘burdensome’

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will vote this week on whether to scrap Biden-era cybersecurity rules, enacted after the Salt Typhoon attacks came to light in 2024, that required telecom carriers to adopt basic security controls.

The regulator's monthly open meeting, due to be held on Thursday, will dedicate time to the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) and the rules the FCC introduced following a reinterpretation of the 1994 legislation.

In January 2025, five days before President Trump returned to the White House, the FCC adopted a declaratory ruling that imposed sweeping rules on communications organizations to prevent unauthorized access to their networks.

A declaratory ruling is a regulator's official interpretation of a law. It is legally binding and becomes so immediately. 

Under the Trump administration, the FCC wants to reverse this ruling. A fact sheet [PDF] that will be handed to those voting on Thursday ...