The Obama administration on Tuesday announced new labels for gadgets that are less vulnerable to cyberattacks. The labels will be placed on products that are considered to be more secure.

The next time you’re in the market for a smart TV, fitness tracker or other connected gadget, you could see a new US government-backed label identifying some products as being particularly hardened against hackers. On Tuesday, the Biden administration announced it’s moving to implement a cybersecurity labeling program aimed at helping consumers pick out trustworthy tech products that are rated as more secure than the competition. The program seeks to bolster the nation’s cybersecurity overall by guiding Americans who may be in the market for smart home tech or wearables toward products that meet a high standard for cybersecurity as defined by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The label will appear as a “distinct shield logo,” according to the White House. Products that meet the criteria for the label could include tech that requires strong passwords and that provides regular software updates to guard against the latest threats, for example. A wide range of products could be covered, the administration said, including smart refrigerators, microwave ovens, thermostats, home voice assistants and — eventually — WiFi routers, after NIST finishes designing cybersecurity standards for them later this year. For years, cybersecurity has been an afterthought in a market for so-called “internet of things” (IoT) devices that prioritizes low costs over security, according to security experts. One of the more famous examples of IoT security failures came in 2016, when criminal hackers used an army of infected computers, known as the Mirai botnet, to disrupt access to the websites of Twitter, PayPal, and others. Products certified under the new program may come with a QR code that links to a national database affirming its participation, the White House added in a release. The launch of the program could still be as far as a year away. But the administration took its first steps toward implementation on Tuesday as the Federal Communications Commission applied for a trademark linked to the effort, known as the “US Cyber Trust Mark.” The FCC, which regulates wireless devices, also issued a formal proposal that will be open for public feedback on how it should manage the program. “This new labeling program would help provide Americans with greater assurances about the cybersecurity of the products they use and rely on in their everyday lives,” the administration said in a statement. “It would also be beneficial for businesses, as it would help differentiate’ The next The timere shopping online from your smartphone while sitting down on your couch, you could see if the product is safe to use. The next time you’re shopping online from your smartphone while sitting down on your couch, you could see if the product is safe to use. The next time you’re shopping online from your smartphone while sitting down on your couch, you could see if the product is safe