First appeared on FOX: A new bipartisan effort is underway in Congress to counter the growing threat of cyberattacks from China and other U.S. adversaries.
The bill, spearheaded by Republican Rep. Pat Fallon of Texas, would impose new restrictions on the technology the U.S. government can purchase by forcing federal agencies or offices to only buy technology from “original equipment manufacturers” or “authorized resellers,” according to a bill text obtained by Fox News Digital.
Fallon explained that this ensures that U.S. technology is purchased from “trusted sources” rather than third parties that may be sourcing equipment from countries such as China, Russia or Iran.
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China's technology “grey market” has become a major issue both at home and abroad. (Photo Illustration: Budrul Chukrut/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
“[O]”Adversaries are targeting U.S. hardware and software systems by selling counterfeit U.S. government products through so-called 'gray market' sellers,” Fallon explained. “These products are sold as legitimate hardware, but they allow adversaries access to U.S. government systems, making it much easier to carry out subsequent cyber attacks.”
The Texas Republican warned that the US is suffering “millions of attacks every day” and that increasing sophistication of artificial intelligence (AI) technology is making cyber attacks easier to carry out.
The House bill, Secure America's Supply Chain for Federal Equipment (SAFE) Act, is supported by a bipartisan companion bill in the Senate.
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Texas Republican Rep. Pat Fallon is working to protect the U.S. from the influence of foreign tech gray markets. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey Jr.)
The effort is being led by Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas and Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Gary Peters, Democrat of Michigan.
The “gray market” refers to alternative channels for purchasing and selling genuine products without the manufacturer's authorization.
It's a particularly prevalent problem in the high-tech sector, and while a lack of transparency makes it difficult to quantify its full extent, the grey market in technology is thought to have cost manufacturers billions of dollars, according to AGMA Global.
China has a thriving grey market in technology, and Hong Kong's Asia Times reported earlier this year that Chinese companies were circumventing U.S. export controls to obtain high-performance American-made AI chips for its military and research purposes.
Moreover, while the U.S. government already bans certain Beijing-backed companies, the new bill would prevent China from using intermediaries to hide those companies and other illicit sources and flood the U.S. market.
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Fallon said the bill would “avoid even the risk of the federal government being tricked into procuring these harmful products.”
“The world is at a time of extreme instability and danger. Simply put, we are at a tipping point, which means we must do everything in our power to protect vulnerable systems from cyberattacks and adversary intrusions,” he said.
