By Andrew J. Hawkins , transportation editor with 10+ years of experience who covers EVs, public transportation, and aviation. His work has appeare

US moves to block all Chinese auto imports through software crackdown

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2024-09-23 16:30:02

By Andrew J. Hawkins , transportation editor with 10+ years of experience who covers EVs, public transportation, and aviation. His work has appeared in The New York Daily News and City & State.

The Biden administration proposed new rules blocking the “sale or import” of connected vehicle software originating from “countries of concern,” a move that would effectively ban all auto imports in the US from China.

Vehicles with hardware and software from China pose an “acute” threat to the US’s national security, the White House said in a statement. This includes the potential for “sabotage and surveillance, such as remotely disabling a vehicle in the middle of the road.”

The rules would cover anything that connects a vehicle to the outside world, such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, cellular, and satellite components. It also addresses concerns that technology like cameras, sensors, and onboard computers could be exploited by foreign adversaries to collect sensitive data about US citizens and infrastructure.

The rules stem from an investigation launched earlier this year by the Commerce Department into connected vehicle software produced in China and other nations that are considered antagonistic to the US. The regulations would force American automakers and suppliers to remove Chinese-made software and hardware from their vehicles in the coming years.