Cybersecurity Policy Report, FCC Chair Celebrates ‘Initial Success’ of ‘Operation Clean Carts’, (Oct 10, 2025)

By Lynn Stanton

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr today announced in a post on X “the initial success” of “Operation Clean Carts,” an initiative in cooperation with e-commerce sites which he said had led to the removal of “several million listings for covered equipment,” that is, equipment deemed to be a significant national security threat to communications networks.

In a press release included in the X post, but not available at CPR’s news deadline during the ongoing federal government shutdown, Chairman Carr said that e-commerce sites had also made “new commitments … to both adopt additional best practices and coordinate with the FCC to monitor and prevent the unlawful online sale of Covered List equipment.”

Those commitments include specifically screening for, and removing, unauthorized covered equipment, using mechanisms that leverage “both manual and automated controls,” according to the press release. E-tailers will also “educate third-party sellers about the FCC’s Covered List rules and obligations[] and update their internal protocols.”

Chairman Carr said the covered equipment included “certain Huawei smart watches and Dahua home security cameras.”

Operation Clean Carts is led by the FCC’s Council on National Security.

“I expect all online retailers to comply with the federal prohibition on the marketing and sale of insecure Covered List items,” the Chairman said in his X post.

News: FederalLegislation DataSecurity