US FCC investigating Amazon over alleged sale of outlawed products
(Reuters) - 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 violations of Commission rules related to the marketing and sale of equipment without proper FCC authorization," said Jonathan Uriarte, Director of Strategic Communications at the FCC.
NBC News had earlier reported that several online retailers and drone technology companies were marketing the sale of radio frequency jammers as drone deterrence or privacy tools, sidestepping federal laws that prohibit such devices from being offered for sale in the country.
Amazon did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
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.
(Reporting by Ismail Shakil; Additional reporting by Harshita Mary Varghese in Bengaluru; Editing by Eric Beech and Krishna Chandra Eluri)
