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Tue, 24 Mar 2026

Tue, 24 Mar 2026 US bans new foreign-made consumer internet routers

There are almost no major brands of internet routers that are manufactured in the US.
The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has banned new foreign-made consumer internet routers due to national security concerns. The decision, made on Monday, adds all consumer-grade routers made outside the US to a list of equipment deemed not secure enough for use. Routers are used by homes and businesses to connect devices to the internet, but malicious actors have exploited security gaps in foreign-made routers to attack American households, disrupt networks, enable espionage, and facilitate intellectual property theft, according to the FCC. The ban applies to all "new device models" of foreign-made routers, but people can still use their existing routers. Any new router made outside the US will need to be approved by the FCC before it can be imported, marketed, or sold in the country. To get approval, companies manufacturing routers outside the US must apply for conditional approval and disclose their foreign investors or influence, as well as a plan to bring the manufacturing of the routers to the US. Certain routers may be exempted from the list if they are deemed acceptable by the Department of Defense or the Department of Homeland Security. The FCC's move follows a decision on Friday by government agencies working on national security that internet routers made overseas "posed unacceptable risks" to the US, including potentially far-reaching impacts to the American supply chain and the possibility of a cybersecurity attack that could disrupt infrastructure or cause harm to people.