The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has imposed a fine of $34.9 million on Chinese GPS signal jammer vendor.
Per the U.S. law, individuals and businesses are not allowed to use, advertise or sell any type of signal jammer in the country. The signal jammers affect telephone calls, Wi-Fi and more. However, they can also block 911 and other emergency calls as well as interrupt law enforcement communications.
According to an official document issued by FCC, a Chinese online vendor CTS Technology has been found guilty of advertising and selling around 300 types of signal jammers in the U.S. over a period of two years. The $34.9 million fine is the highest the agency has ever imposed. FCC claims that CTS Technology also lied to customers that its products are FCC approved.
According to the FCC document an undercover operation was conducted to stop the illegal sale of signal jammers in the U.S. FCC agents purchased 10 of the signal jammers sold by CTS Technology. They found that the jammers were effectively able to block mobile phone signals as well as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, satellite and GPS signals. Moreover, some of the signal jammers were able to block signals over a distance of half a mile.
"Signal jamming devices (also referred to as signal jammers) operate by transmitting powerful radio signals that overpower, jam, or interfere with authorized communications. While these devices have been marketed with increasing frequency over the Internet, they have no lawful consumer use in the United States. Jammers are not only designed to impede authorized communications and thereby interfere with the rights of legitimate spectrum users and the general public, their operations also place the safety of the public at risk," per the FCC document.
The FCC has also instructed CTS Technology to release the details of customers in the U.S. who purchased signal jammers from the company. CTS Technology has the option to appeal and request for the fine to be reduced. However, if it does not appeal or request for the reduction of the penalty, the company has to pay the fine within 30 days.
According to a Wall Street Journal report, Jian-feng Deng, Chief Executive of CTS Technology, says that he has not received a penalty notice from FCC and his company rarely sells jamming devices in the U.S.
Deng claims that the company has hardly sold 10 signal jammers in the U.S. and it has never advertised its products as being approved by the FCC. Deng says that CTS Technology primarily sells signal jammers in the China. However, the company is unaware if its customers resell CTS Technology's products in the U.S.
