If you have ever been asked for “NDAA compliant” cameras, it usually came from a federal contract, a grant, a school district or a landlord with government tenants. Here is what the term means, who actually has to follow it, and how to check the cameras you already have.
What NDAA compliant means
NDAA is the National Defense Authorization Act, the law Congress passes each year to set defense policy. Section 889 of the 2019 Act bans federal agencies from buying video surveillance and telecommunications equipment made by five Chinese companies, and bans them from contracting with businesses that use that equipment as a substantial or essential part of any system.
The five companies named in Section 889 are:
- Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology (Hikvision)
- Dahua Technology
- Hytera Communications
- Huawei Technologies
- ZTE Corporation
The ban covers their subsidiaries and affiliates too, and it covers equipment they made that is sold under another brand name. A camera can carry a different label on the box and still be covered.
An NDAA compliant camera is one that contains no equipment or essential components produced by those companies.
Who has to use NDAA compliant cameras
- Federal agencies, directly.
- Federal contractors and subcontractors, for systems used in their contract work.
- Organizations spending federal grant or loan money on security equipment.
For a typical Dallas home or a private business with no federal work, NDAA does not make those cameras illegal to own. But the rules have tightened. In November 2022 the Federal Communications Commission stopped authorizing new equipment from Hikvision and Dahua for sale in the United States, and both companies sit on the FCC’s Covered List of equipment it considers a national security risk. Cameras already installed were not recalled, but new models from those makers cannot be authorized. Source: FCC Covered List.
Why private businesses ask for it anyway
- They bid on, or hope to bid on, federal, state or school work, and do not want to replace the system later.
- A tenant, lender or insurer asks for it.
- They want cameras from makers whose models can still be authorized and supported in the US.
How to check the cameras you have
- Look at the label on the camera and the recorder for the maker and the FCC ID. The FCC ID tells you who actually made the device, whatever the brand on the box.
- Ask your installer for a written statement that the equipment is Section 889 compliant. Federal contractors sign the same kind of representation for the government.
- Check the recorder, not only the cameras. A compliant camera recording onto a covered recorder is still a covered system.
NDAA compliant systems in Dallas
We install NDAA compliant camera systems for Dallas businesses that need them, alongside alarms, access control and 24/7 monitoring. Call (469) 809-6009 for a free on-site assessment, or see commercial security and camera installation.