The National Communications Commission (NCC), on June 10, approved “Regulations for Inspection of Public Telecommunications Network". The NCC is authorized by the Telecommunications Management Act (hereinafter referred to as the Act) to formulate the regulations which specify the legislative procedure of network inspection, such as inspection notice, inspection timing, testing methods, passing standards, deficiency correction, etc.

For the need of diverse future networks and promotion of digital economy, President Tsai promulgated the Act on June 26, 2019, which introduced the concept of networking sharing. To be specified, the Act allows operators to combine others’ public telecommunications networks, including fixed network, mobile network and satellite network. It provides operators more flexibility of network development and efficiency of network maintenance. Nevertheless, network sharing may increase the risk of stability and cybersecurity.

Therefore, in order to build high-quality, well-secured and trustworthy telecommunications infrastructure and protect consumers’ rights, the Act authorizes the NCC to periodically or non-periodically inspect operators’ network so as to ensure it continuously meets the capability of telecommunications performance and cybersecurity protection that the NCC requests. In aligning with the Act, the regulations have taken July 1, 2020.