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FCC bans foreign-produced solar inverters, grid lockout begins today

pv-magazine-usa.com

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Re: FCC bans foreign-produced solar inverters, grid lockout begins today

#21

Post by lazide »

chrisjj wrote: post #14
leonidasrup wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A small solar inverter doesn't need to be internet connected, but solar inverter app monitoring lets you track energy production, view real-time power flows, and check device status using a smartphone or tablet. So automaticaly you could get all the IoT security issues. https://solar-assistant.io/ https://apps.apple.com/us/app/solarman-smart/id1469487897 If an attacker could control a significant portion of solar inv…

> A small solar inverter doesn't need to be internet connected, but solar inverter app monitoring lets you track energy production, view real-time power flows, and check device status using a smartphone or tablet ... over USB or Bluetooth. Internet is solely for convenience.

So is 90% of everything we use the internet for.

It’s also possible to pay my bills via check sent via USPS (for now), but I bet at least 80% of your typical utility customers use the online portal.

Re: FCC bans foreign-produced solar inverters, grid lockout begins today

#22

Post by giov4 »

lazide wrote: post #19
giov4 wrote: post #18

while I totally understand the risk of foreign hardware and firmware, this is exclusively a sabotage of green power development confirmed by the methodology and speed of implementation of it. blocking related projects by forcing a supply chain re-co figuration and disconnect from grid for non compliancy it's a clear targeted sabotage and does not mitigate the risk! -> us produced inverter with asian chips and firmwar…

Counterpoint - building out even more critical infrastructure which might as well be coming pre-rootkitted by a known foreign adversary seems quite dumb?

nope, that's the defacto standard for the past 30 years and I was against it for security reasons, it was not dumb it was convenient in times of peace for many!

so I agree if my country would produce and enforce usage of country developed inverters with a correct and ramp up plan to reach that.

but hard cutting it without having the infrastructure and market ready to compensate that is just full "rword"ness.

and then there will be still parts of boards and chips coming anyway from external suppliers and being "fake" ?

what about the real crit infra beside solar and wind? what about the supply chain there? fully localized? 3rd party and 4th party fully audited?

is just a joke

Re: FCC bans foreign-produced solar inverters, grid lockout begins today

#23

Post by nicman23 »

kotaKat wrote: post #16

Not like the threat was in the room with us this entire time. Looking at all those APC UPSes that had the TLSstorm exploit and possibility of actual burnout and fire... But sure. It's the evil evil Chinese shit that's the problem. I feel so much safer knowing we banned things like Autel's drones, random power inverters, and Unitree robots, but not Autel's key programmers kids are using to steal cars! Funny thing sear…

i mean at least you can sue apc

Re: FCC bans foreign-produced solar inverters, grid lockout begins today

#24

Post by no-name-here »

leonidasrup wrote: post #10
jauntywundrkind wrote: post #2

Absolute cowardice & wanton destruction of the world, this. This is just a political ploy, on no merit, and it's the same anything-and-everything as the administration pulled to prevent cheap, effective, capable wind power from happening. https://apnews.com/article/trump-offshore-wind-national-secu... https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/wind/states-lawsuit-tru... It's nonsense and there's no pretense, no data otherw…

I would not call offshore wind cheap, as can bee seen in Germany in the 2025 Germany's No-Subsidy Offshore Wind Auction. https://www.offshorewind.biz/2025/08/06/germanys-2-5-gw-offs... https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/analyzing-failure-germanys-no... Private investors are currently not willing to invest into offshore wind at market pricing. Solar is much cheaper.

1. Solar may be cheaper on average, but the Trump admin wouldn’t have to be banning companies from pursuing wind and rescinding wind leases that companies had chosen to purchase (as GP commenter linked) if companies didn’t think wind was a way to generate electricity that could also generate a profit.

2. Combining wind with other forms of renewables can also be an excellent option as wind can also generate electricity at night, in more northern climates, etc.

Re: FCC bans foreign-produced solar inverters, grid lockout begins today

#25

Post by egorfine »

lazide wrote: post #20
egorfine wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

None of this requires internet connection.

How do you expect your typical mobile app to work through NAT, etc. without an internet connection? For your typical ‘dumb’ home user, anyway?

It should not. There is exactly zero reason for all this data to leave the premises.

> For your typical ‘dumb’ home user

Well, yeah. That's the problem. There is no explanation to the dumb user why this stat is only available while connected to home network.

Re: FCC bans foreign-produced solar inverters, grid lockout begins today

#26

Post by cyanydeez »

lazide wrote: post #19
giov4 wrote: post #18

while I totally understand the risk of foreign hardware and firmware, this is exclusively a sabotage of green power development confirmed by the methodology and speed of implementation of it. blocking related projects by forcing a supply chain re-co figuration and disconnect from grid for non compliancy it's a clear targeted sabotage and does not mitigate the risk! -> us produced inverter with asian chips and firmwar…

Counterpoint - building out even more critical infrastructure which might as well be coming pre-rootkitted by a known foreign adversary seems quite dumb?

there's no evidence for the countpoint; so it's mostly counterparanoia.

Re: FCC bans foreign-produced solar inverters, grid lockout begins today

#27

Post by fuzzfactor »

lazide wrote: post #20
egorfine wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

None of this requires internet connection.

How do you expect your typical mobile app to work through NAT, etc. without an internet connection? For your typical ‘dumb’ home user, anyway?

Regardless of broadband existing or not, there was never supposed to be an abscence of dial-up.

Re: FCC bans foreign-produced solar inverters, grid lockout begins today

#29

Post by chrisjj »

lazide wrote: post #21
chrisjj wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> A small solar inverter doesn't need to be internet connected, but solar inverter app monitoring lets you track energy production, view real-time power flows, and check device status using a smartphone or tablet ... over USB or Bluetooth. Internet is solely for convenience.

So is 90% of everything we use the internet for. It’s also possible to pay my bills via check sent via USPS (for now), but I bet at least 80% of your typical utility customers use the online portal.

So is 90% of everything attackers use the internet for.

And re loss from an attack, your bill payment is not comparable to a solar inverter.

Re: FCC bans foreign-produced solar inverters, grid lockout begins today

#30

Post by quietsegfault »

egorfine wrote: post #25
lazide wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How do you expect your typical mobile app to work through NAT, etc. without an internet connection? For your typical ‘dumb’ home user, anyway?

It should not. There is exactly zero reason for all this data to leave the premises. > For your typical ‘dumb’ home user Well, yeah. That's the problem. There is no explanation to the dumb user why this stat is only available while connected to home network.

My solar production data is fed to my ISO so I can sell clean energy vouchers. My solar installer just called me the other day asking if I had a tree shading a panel, because production on that panel was low. There are plenty of reasons to have internet connected solar equipment.
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