The US government just banned consumer routers made outside the US
Nomen Nescio <[email protected]> Wed, 25 Mar 2026 10:22:06 +0100 (CET)
| Newsgroups | alt.comp.networking.routers, alt.survival, comp.os.linux.networking, sac.politics, talk.politics.guns |
|---|---|
| Organization | dizum.com - The Internet Problem Provider |
| Message-ID | <[email protected]> |
In December, the Federal Communications Commission banned all future drones made in foreign countries from being imported into the United States, unless or until their maker gets an exemption. Now, the FCC has done the exact same for consumer networking gear, citing an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States and to the safety and security of U.S. persons. If you already have a Wi-Fi or wired router, you can keep on using it and companies that have already gotten FCC radio authorization for a specific foreign-made product can continue to import that product. But since the vast majority if not all consumer routers are manufactured outside the United States, the vast majority of future consumer routers are now banned. By adding all foreign-made consumer routers to its Covered List, the FCC is saying it will no longer authorize their radios, which de facto bans new devices from import into the country. Now, router makers need to A) secure a conditional approval that lets them keep getting new products cleared for US entry while they work to convince the government that theyll open up manufacturing in the US, or B) make the decision to skip selling future products in the US, like dronemaker DJI already did. Like with the foreign drone ban, the FCC has a National Security Determination that it says justifies these actions, one which claims that Allowing routers produced abroad to dominate the U.S. https://www.theverge.com/news/899172/fcc-foreign-router-ban