WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. government has banned all consumer-grade internet routers produced in foreign countries over national security concerns.
Monday, the Federal Communications Commission updated its Covered List to include this.
The FCC's Covered List is a list of communications equipment and services that are deemed to pose an unacceptable risk to the national security of the U.S. or the safety and security of U.S. persons.
Routers are the boxes used in homes that connect computers, phones, and smart devices to the internet.
'Malicious actors have exploited security gaps in foreign-made routers to attack American households, disrupt networks, enable espionage, and facilitate intellectual property theft,' FCC said. 'Foreign-made routers were also involved in the Volt, Flax, and Salt Typhoon cyber-attacks targeting vital U.S. infrastructure,' it added.
The ban applies to only 'new device models,' and exempts foreign-made routers already in use.
It also does not prevent retailers from continuing to sell, import, or market router models approved previously through the FCC's equipment authorization process.
FCC said routers that the Department of War or the Department of Homeland Security have granted 'Conditional Approval' after finding that such devices do not pose risks, are also exempted from the ban.
The ban was based on a White House-convened Executive Branch inter-agency body's decision that such routers 'pose unacceptable risks to the national security of the United States and its citizens.'
It noted that foreign-produced routers introduce 'a supply chain vulnerability that could disrupt the U.S. economy, critical infrastructure, and national defense' and pose 'a severe cyber-security risk that could be leveraged to immediately and severely disrupt U.S. critical infrastructure and directly harm U.S. persons.'
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