The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) banned the import of consumer internet routers made overseas, citing security concerns.
According to major foreign media on the 23rd local time, the FCC updated its list of equipment deemed vulnerable to security risks and added all consumer routers manufactured outside the United States to the prohibited items. Routers are widely used in homes and corporations to connect various devices such as computers, mobile phones, and TVs to the internet.
The FCC said, "Malicious actors have exploited security vulnerabilities in foreign-made routers to attack U.S. households, cripple networks, and enable espionage," and "they have also used them to steal intellectual property."
The ban applies only to new imports. Foreign-made routers already owned can continue to be used.
Under the measure, all routers manufactured outside the United States must obtain FCC approval before being imported, sold, or distributed in the United States. In this process, they must disclose overseas investors or influence and present plans to relocate router manufacturing facilities to the United States.
The FCC said that certain routers approved by the Department of Defense or the Department of Homeland Security could be granted exceptions. However, neither agency has yet added any specific router to the exception list.
The FCC's action follows a decision on the 20th by national security-related government agencies that internet routers manufactured overseas pose an unacceptable risk to the United States. The FCC noted that between 2024 and 2025, malicious router-based access was involved in three cyberattacks targeting the United States—Volt, Flax, and Salt Typhoon. The U.S. government determined that these cyberattacks were carried out by entities within the Chinese government or by Chinese government proxies. Most internet routers are assembled or manufactured outside the United States, primarily in Taiwan or China.
The FCC's ban also applies when a router is designed in the United States but manufactured overseas. The Starlink Wi-Fi router launched by Elon Musk's SpaceX is produced in Texas and is not subject to the regulation.