US regulator moves to cut China's state telecoms off from American phone numbers

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) plans to vote on November 19 on a proposal to ban China's three big state-owned telecoms companies from direct access to American phone numbers, Reuters reported on October 29.

The proposal would cover China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom, along with other internet-based phone service providers deemed to pose national security risks.

The stated reason: robocalls

FCC chair Brendan Carr framed the measure as a defence against fraud. The agency will be "strengthening our first line of defense against bad actors and illegal robocallers," he said.

Direct access to phone numbers lets a provider obtain blocks of US numbers itself, rather than through a US partner. Regulators say that can make it easier for bad actors to generate large volumes of calls and harder to trace where they come from.

Part of a wider crackdown

The vote would be the latest in a series of US actions against Chinese telecoms companies. The FCC previously barred China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom from providing international telecommunications services in the United States, on national security grounds.

Other measures under consideration, according to the reports, include barring the companies from connecting to US networks and from operating data centres in the US, and barring internet phone providers that use equipment from companies on the FCC's national security list, such as Huawei and ZTE. The agency is also moving to stop Chinese laboratories from testing US electronics by December 2028.

Beijing's response

China's foreign ministry said it firmly opposes the likely ban and accused Washington of abusing the concept of national security to suppress Chinese companies.

What it means for consumers

For most people in the United States, the immediate effect is likely to be small. The three Chinese carriers have little direct consumer business in the US after earlier restrictions. The bigger stakes are in the wider contest between Washington and Beijing over who builds and controls the networks that carry the world's communications.

The FCC vote is on a proposal, so the final rules could still change after public comment.