The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has blocked a California-based telecom firm from providing international services and added its proposed operations to a national security risk list over its links to Chinese telecom companies.

In a July 7 order, the FCC blocked Digitalsystem Technology Inc.’s application to provide international telecommunications services in the United States, saying the corporation is controlled and majority-owned by a citizen of China and that its proposed operations pose “substantial and unacceptable national security and law enforcement risks.”

In a separate action the same day, the FCC also added Digitalsystem’s proposed international telecom services to its Covered List of services that are deemed to pose an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States. As a result, they are barred from receiving federal subsidies, from being used by federal contractors, and from further imports and sales.

The FCC said the proposed services could be exploited by the Chinese communist regime to undermine the United States.

The commission cited Digitalsystem’s proposed partnerships with Hong Kong-based PCCW, China Unicom, and China Mobile, as well as its planned services and existing or potential relationships with other providers.

The Epoch Times has reached out to Digitalsystem Technology Inc for comment.

The Trump administration is taking ⁠a firm stance on Chinese telecom companies with links to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Earlier in the year, the FCC said it wanted to ban three major Chinese telecom companies from operating data centers in the United States, expanding a crackdown that had already barred them from providing telecom services in the country.

A public notice released by the FCC on April 9 highlighted China-linked telecom firms as a key national security concern.

The FCC said it has “tentatively” concluded it should ⁠prohibit U.S. and other telecommunications carriers operating in the United States from becoming interconnected with companies on the “Covered List,” including major state-linked Chinese operators China Mobile, China Telecom, ​and China Unicom.

All three operators have already faced restrictions or license revocations in the United States in recent years.

The FCC said it was also looking into prohibiting interconnection with any facilities owned or operated by entities identified on the Covered List, including data centers and points of presence.

A point of presence is a physical access point that connects networks, enabling efficient data exchange between them. The agency also said it was considering extending the ban to some affiliates of companies on the national security list.

The FCC could also prohibit telecommunications carriers from becoming interconnected with companies that have installed equipment from companies on the list, including Huawei.

The FCC voted on April 30 to advance the proposed rules.

The FCC also voted unanimously on April 30 to advance a proposal to ban all Chinese labs from testing electronic devices such ‌as smartphones, cameras, and computers for use in the United States.

Last year, it banned testing of U.S. electronics by labs owned or controlled by the Chinese regime, ​which led to 23 labs being barred.

The FCC ⁠says about 75 percent of all electronics are tested in labs in China.

It also banned all imports of foreign-made commercial routers in March. That decision followed a March 20 report by an executive branch interagency body with national security expertise. The report found commercial routers, the boxes used in homes to connect computers, phones, and other smart devices to the internet, posed an unacceptable risk to the United States.

Last year, the FCC banned all new models of foreign-made drones because of national security concerns, a move that will shut out Chinese drone manufacturers DJI and Autel from the U.S. market.

The FCC said in a Dec. 22, 2025, public notice that its decision was made after obtaining results from an executive-branch interagency review convened by the White House, which concluded that foreign drones and related critical components pose “unacceptable risks to the national security of the United States and to the safety and security of U.S. persons.”

In October 2025, the agency took the initial step to revoke HKT (International) Ltd’s authority to provide international and domestic telecom services to and within the United States.

It said that HKT is affiliated with CCP-controlled entity China Unicom (Americas), which is already listed on the FCC’s Covered List due to national security determinations.

Reuters contributed to this report.