US politicians used mounting scrutiny of the security of communications kit to revive an effort to implement strict standards around IoT gear bought by government agencies.

A cross-party group introduced a bill to Congress calling for the implementation of a set of minimum security requirements, which would be set by the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

Specifically, the standards would cover secure development, identity management, patching and configuration management for IoT devices.

Telecom industry group CTIA, which runs an IoT cybersecurity certification programme, was among the backers of the proposal.

Congresswoman Robin Kelly, a co-sponsor of the bill in the House of Representatives, said in a statement it would help prevent IoT devices from becoming a backdoor for hackers, noting “everything from our national security to the personal information of American citizens could be vulnerable because of security holes in these devices”.

It is unclear whether the bill will be successful, as a similar effort launched in 2017 failed to gain traction.

However, the latest move follows the publication of a report by the Departments of Commerce and Homeland Security in May 2018, which recommended the federal government lead by example on cybersecurity by requiring more secure devices and services.