Part 68

The section of Title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations (1975) of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that provides the technical and procedural standards under which customer premises equipment (CPE) can be connected directly to the United States public switched telephone network (PSTN) without causing harm and without a requirement for protective circuit arrangements. Part 68 allows manufacturers of foreign (i.e., non-telco) equipment to certify that it will cause no harm to the network, thereby eliminating any need for special interface devices incorporating electrical protection. Previously, foreign CPE required individually tested and registered interface devices in order to connect to the PSTN. See also CPE, FCC, and PSTN.