00:00The FCC just dropped another bombshell for the tech industry.
00:03Consumer-grade routers, or routers for us UK folk,
00:06produced in foreign countries are now banned in the US.
00:09This follows blocks against companies such as Huawei and DGI in recent years.
00:13And while routers that are already on sale and in use are safe,
00:17the FCC says new models made outside the borders of the US
00:20represent both a supply chain vulnerability and a severe cybersecurity risk.
00:25In other words, there are suspicions that problems in router supply
00:28could disrupt the US economy and infrastructure,
00:30and that they could be used by foreign states
00:33to spy on the communications of US citizens.
00:35Now this is part of a wider movement by the US
00:38to reduce its reliance on other countries for hardware and software.
00:42The FCC's statement pointed to a series of recent cyber attacks,
00:45including Bolt, Flax, and Salt Typhoon,
00:48all of which involved foreign-made router technology.
00:51Finding a router manufactured in the US isn't all that easy either.
00:55Many US companies who sell routers to consumers,
00:57including Google and Netgear, have their products made overseas.
01:01Reuters estimates that some 60% of home routers in the US
01:04are manufactured in China and imported in.
01:06Companies are going to have to change their manufacturing processes
01:09or abandon the US market it would seem,
01:11although they can apply for conditional approval from the FCC for new routers.
01:15At the moment, it's not clear how easy that would be to get, though.
01:18It's worth emphasizing that nothing is going to happen
01:21to your current router or home Wi-Fi network.
01:23That will keep working as normal.
01:25The FCC ban only applies to new products going forward,
01:29not routers that have already been approved or put on sale.
01:31It's possible that router manufacturers based in the US
01:34will be treated more favorably than foreign entities in the future.
01:37TP-Link is one of the companies that's been accused of having strong connections
01:40to the Chinese government,
01:41but it's going to take a while before we get the full picture
01:44of how this decision will play out.
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