FCC Investigating amazon for selling "outlawed products.

[Enterprise312ok]

Get your boufengs and anytones while you still can

US FCC investigating Amazon over alleged sale of outlawed products

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission is investigating Amazon and other retailers for the alleged marketing and selling of unlawful electronic devices, an FCC spokesperson told Reuters on Wednesday. "We have several ongoing investigations into retailers, including Amazon, for potential...

finance.yahoo.com

 

[AudioShockwav]

From the link:

NBC News said it found nine independent sellers on Amazon recently selling "jammer" devices that can be used disable security cameras and block Wi-Fi networks.

Overpowered Laser pointers, cell phone jammers, Wi-Fi blockers are on that hit list I am sure.
I seriously doubt that they want to go back to court over export radios again after the last train wreck that they had in court.
They had to pay the legal bills for the defendants in that last case after they lost......

73
Jeff

 

[BC Coyote]

Shockwave is right. This has absolutely nothing to do with radio gear and everything to do with illegal wifi and cellphone jamming devices which are available on Amazon.
Export radios are a complete non-issue in the overall scheme of things !
And even if they do end up on their radar, it's OK, 'cause I have enough Anytones and Baofengs to last me for years !

 

[Captain Kilowatt]

I agree with above. This has nothing to do with the radios you mentioned. It is all about cell jammers and wifi jammers that have seemed to sprung up everywhere illegally.

 

[AudioShockwav]

Just this month there was a blurb on KTLA about thieves using wireless jammers to disable security cameras and break into high end homes around LA.
Thievery is high tech today, there are guys boosting your wireless key fob signal out to the car, starting it up and driving away.
This is happening so much that people are stashing there keys in shielded boxes at nite.

briidea Faraday Box Key Fob Protector, RFID Signal Blocking Box, Faraday Box Signal Blocking Shielding Box for Car Key

73
Jeff

 

[Enterprise312ok]

I guess no one has heard of mission creep. Anyways it is Fcc activity none the less.

 

[BC Coyote]

it is Fcc activity none the less.

Glad I live in Canada out of FCC jurisdiction!
Our federal departments are even more useless here than they are in the U.S. And in this case that's a good thing LOL!

 

[AudioShockwav]

I guess no one has heard of mission creep. Anyways it is Fcc activity none the less.

"Mission creep is usually considered undesirable due to how each success breeds more ambitious interventions until a final failure happens, stopping the intervention entirely."

Your correct, it's news, no issues with that.
As for radios.....
The thing is the rules are written to prevent unauthorised "use" of radios.
The way part 95 is written it's actually a legal nightmare and when Ranger went to court they proved that the FCC was confused about there own rules regarding selling " export" radios.


Another subtle ruling made in that case was:

After determining that the imported product was an inherently useful, non-dangerous product whose prohibited importation constituted a malum prohibitum rather than malum in se offense.

Malum prohibitum can be defined as

An act which is immoral because it is illegal; not necessarily illegal because it is immoral.

while malum in se can be defined as

An innately immoral act, regardless of whether it is forbidden by law. Examples include adultery, theft, and murder.

Selling radio equipment intended for the purpose of "commiting a crime" (as defined by actual violating of a law), or selling a product that is "inherently dangerous" seems to be what they have in there sights here.

73
Jeff

 

[Blackcat630]

So who's on board with a new bumper sticker. Replace skateboarding with freebanding...

 

[Shockwave]

I've recently tested two models of inexpensive digital signal generators. One that tops out at 6 GHz with 20 miliwatts (easily boosted with a $15 pre amp) and the other tops out at 1 GHz with a whopping 200 miliwatts of RF!

You don't even want to know what these things can do when set to a .1 second sweep rate with a 100 MHz bandwidth, connected to a simple antenna. While it's hardly noticeable with anything analog, everything digital today, from video to audio, quickly falls apart completely.

That includes everything from TV to WiFi, completely failing in my tests. Needless to say, that expensive yet easy to install Ring camera system I have, got backed up with a less expensive, more reliable, yet hard to install, fully wired system.

The only thing that prevented this type of equipment from being abused, was the fact until recently it required large, expensive laboratory grade sweep signal generators. The Chinese have shrunk that down to a few square inches, battery operated for under $150. That can be bad.

 

[secret squirrel]

I am so glad to know our tax dollars are going to something productive. I am whole heartily offended by faraday glove boxes. Hope they keep selling the Doc Johnson products with built in WiFi router, so mom will be happy on vacation and the kids can get free Wifi in the car.