Detailed in a Final Report and Order issued in late March, the new rules will:
- Eliminate filing requirements related to network change disclosure requirements;
- Overhaul and streamline rules applicable to technology transition discontinuance applications;
- Grant blanket authority for carriers to grandfather legacy voice services, lower-speed data telecommunications services, and interconnected VoIP service provisioned over copper wire.
In a press release issued by the Commission, the newly adopted rules “will get communities off of old and slow copper wire lines and onto new, high-speed networks,” and “free up tens of billions of dollars annually for the rollout of upgraded, high-speed line networks to more Americans.”
As detailed in a Public Notice issued in late March, the FCC’s action follows a determination by an Executive Branch interagency body that such routers “pose unacceptable risks to the national security of the United States or the safety and security of United States persons.” Specifically, the interagency body determined that foreign-produced routers introduce supply chain vulnerabilities and pose serious cybersecurity threats.
The FCC reports that foreign-made internet routers were determined to be involved in recent cyberattacks that targeted vital U.S. infrastructure, including the Volt, Flax, and Salt Typhoon incidents.
The interagency determination provides an exemption for routers that have obtained “Conditional Approval” from either the U.S. Department of War (DoW) or the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The updated Guidance, “Cybersecurity in Medical Devices: Quality Management System Considerations and Content of Premarket Submissions,” addresses requirements of the FDA’s Quality Management System Regulation (QMSR), as they relate to the process of “identifying, analyzing, evaluating, controlling, and monitoring risk throughout the product lifecycle” of a given medical device.
As a potential approach to addressing the requirements of the QMSR, the Guidance proposes that manufacturers consider adopting and implementing a secure product development framework (SPDF). The Guidance defines an SPDF as “a set of processes that reduces the number and severity of vulnerabilities in products throughout the device lifecycle.”
The updated Guidance replaces an earlier version issued by the FDA in June 2025. The FDA says that the recommendations presented in the updated Guidance now generally align with or expand upon those presented in a guidance issued in March 2020 by the International Medical Device Regulators Forum (IMDRF).
As a reminder, guidance documents issued by the FDA are intended to reflect the agency’s current thinking on a particular issue and do not have the force of law.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has confirmed that its Van Allen Probe A disintegrated on its return to Earth, after nearly 14 years in space.
According to an article posted to the website of Astronomy.com, most of the 1300-pound probe burned up upon reentry over the eastern Pacific Ocean early in March. However, the probe’s twin, Van Allen Probe B, is still in orbit and is expected to reenter the Earth’s atmosphere by 2030.
The Van Allen probes were launched in August 2012 in an effort to further our understanding of the radiation environment surrounding our planet. The probes were expected to remain active for about two years. Instead, they successfully operated for nearly seven years, continuing to measure the zone of high-energy charged particles in the Earth’s magnetic field, also known as the Van Allen radiation belts.
Both probes were shut down by NASA in 2019 after they used up their fuel supply and were no longer able to properly orient themselves toward the sun.
The Van Allen radiation belts were first detected in the late 1950s by James Van Allen, a physicist who developed the instruments on the Explorer 1 satellite that made the discovery. Van Allen passed away in 2006.
Published at the end of March, the final version of SP 1308, “NIST Cybersecurity Framework 2.0: Enterprise Risk Management and Workforce Management Quick Start Guide,” applies widely adopted concepts and practices of risk management to help organizations foster more effective communications about cybersecurity risks and implement informed solutions.
Concurrently, NIST has also released for public review and comment a draft version of SP 1347, “CSF 2.0: Informative Reference Quick Start Guide.” This Quick Start Guide provides organizations with helpful reference information about CSF 2.0, as well as information about NIST tools to access that information.
The 36th First Annual (not a typo!) Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony will be held in Zurich, Switzerland on September 3rd. According to Marc Abrahams, the editor of the Annals of Improbable Research and master of ceremonies for the event, “it has become unsafe for our guests to visit the country…We cannot in good conscience ask the new winners or the international journalists who cover the event to travel to the USA this year.”
Not to be confused with the annual Nobel Prizes typically announced in early October in Oslo, Norway, the Ig Nobel Prizes “honor achievements that first make people laugh and then make them think.”
For those not able to travel to Zurich for the formal awards ceremony, Improbable Research will host a Celebration event honoring this year’s winners at Boston University in Boston on September 24th.